Weather Weekend: Winter is Here for a While

The cycle of warming followed by a stout cold front and much cooler temperatures behind it continued this week. We had almost spring-like day on Tuesday with warm and muggy conditions. But that changed rapidly overnight. A cold front brought with it a fairly strong line of storms that dropped anywhere from half and inch to two inches of rain in a few hours. By Wednesday morning, temperatures were in the 30s with a little remaining drizzle.

Fortunately, all the rain will clear out for Thursday and Friday, but the cold is here to stay for a while, at least what passes for cold in Houston. Let's be honest, even when it gets into the 30s here, which isn't all that often, we can still go grab a frozen margarita and not think twice. Take that, Yankees.

Thursday should be beautiful with sunny skies and highs around 60 degrees. Despite the passing of the cold front, we don't expect any freezing temperatures this go-round. Friday should be roughly a carbon copy of Thursday with lows around 40 and highs back around 60. It should be glorious winter weather in Houston.

Saturday is a bit of a question mark at this point. A low pressure system should make its way through from the west, but how it will affect Houston is still unclear. Recent forecast models have kept the vast majority of rain from the system offshore or right along the coastline. That probably will amount to a slight increase in rain chances and some partly to perhaps mostly cloudy conditions. Highs will remain in the lower 60s.

Sunday, onshore flow will increase slightly which will lead to slightly higher — and we do mean slightly — temperatures, maybe into the mid and upper 60s. Certainly there will be a few clouds around as we head into a new week and another cold front.

Fortunately, we aren't expecting much rain if any over the weekend and the temperatures should be ideal for getting outside. Next week, the cold reasserts itself. Winter, the southeast Texas version, is here to stay for a while.