Onto A New Month

By Gene Norman

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Someone asked me today, "What's up the weather lately? Mild one day - cool the next!"  Having been in Houston a while, I just smiled and said, "it's February".  The shortest month nearly always brings wild swings as weather patterns begin to shift.  There are still shots of cool air coming out of Southern Canada and down through the plains.  Meanwhile, occasional shifts of southerly winds often mean a brief warm up.  As the month comes to a close, we're bracing for the former and March will starts chilly.  Remember the old adage - "in like a Lamb, out like a Lion" and vice versa. Here's a look at how cold it will likely get tonight across Southeast Texas.  

We didn't break 60° today thanks to the persistent cloud cover.  We'll likely see fewer clouds Friday, but the chill in the air will last through the beginning of next week.  Bundle up!  

Here's how February ends up by the numbers: temperatures averaged 2° above normal and we fell short of normal rainfall for the month by 2.1".  

TONIGHT: Fair skies with light winds and chilly feel.  Temperatures falling through the low 40s in the evening to the upper 30s in town and close to freezing for northern suburbs.  North winds 5-10 or lighter.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR FRIDAY IS: 7
FRIDAY: Mostly sunny, continued cool and dry.  Highs barely reach 60°. Steady northwest winds 8-12 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR SATURDAY IS: 7
FRIDAY: Sunny and cold in the morning.  Morning temperatures in the upper 30s with a light freeze in northern neighborhoods.  Highs below 60°.  Breezy northwest winds 10-15 mph.

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A Cool Wind Blows In

By Gene Norman

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The glaze of high clouds (cirrocumulus to be precise) continues to drift across our skies while gusty winds signal the first of several really chilly nights.  This could be double-blanket territory as lows the next few mornings will slip into the upper 30s and even freezing for many north of Houston.  Exactly how cold it gets will depend on how long the steady northwest winds linger overnight.  They won't be as brisk as this afternoon, but they'll still be there.  Those winds are bringing in not only cold but dry air.  That's due in part from the fact that the wind is blowing over the recent snow in the Texas panhandle and the southern plains states.  The result is like an atmospheric refrigerator and Houston is on the bottom shelf.

TONIGHT: Fair skies with a steady breeze and chilly feel.  Temperatures falling through the low 40s in the evening to the upper 30s in town and close to freezing for northern suburbs.  Northwest winds 10-15 mph diminishing to 5-10 mph overnight.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR THURSDAY IS: 8
WEDNESDAY: Sunny and continued cool and dry.  Highs barely reach 60°. Breezy northwest winds 8-12 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR FRIDAY IS: 8
FRIDAY: Sunny and cold in the morning.  Increasing high cloudiness by late afternoon.  Morning temperatures in the upper 30s with a light freeze in northern neighborhoods.  Highs in the low  60s.  Breezy with northwest winds 10-15 mph.

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A Cool Spell

By Gene Norman

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Some like it cool - does that describe you?  Well, if it does, you're really going to like the next few days.  The chill that arrived in the wake of Monday's near gale force winds left us a crisp, cool Tuesday.  A veil of high clouds streaming in overhead may keep temperatures from falling area-wide into the 30s overnight.  However, I expect that veil to thin tomorrow and Thursday.  That should allow morning temperatures to dip close to freezing for some neighborhoods north of Houston and in the upper 30s in town.  High pressure keeps the afternoons cool and dry with mostly sunny skies.  Another reinforcing blast of colder Canadian air is set to arrive by the end of the week.  A light freeze descends across the area by Saturday morning.  Too early to tell if its winter's last hurrah.

TONIGHT: Fair and chilly.  Temperatures falling through the upper 40s in the evening to the low 40s in town and some upper 30s for northern suburbs.  Light south winds 5-10 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR WEDNESDAY IS: 8
WEDNESDAY: Mostly sunny and crisp early, then milder by afternoon.  Highs in the upper 60s.  Breezy with becoming west to northwest 10-15 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR THURSDAY IS: 8
THURSDAY: Sunny and continued cool.  Morning temperatures in the upper 30s with a light freeze in northern neighborhoods.  Highs in the low to mid 60s.  Breezy with north and northwest winds 5-10 mph.

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Hang On!

By Gene Norman

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As expected, VERY gusty winds are blowing into southeast Texas this afternoon in the wake of another underwhelming rain episode.  Part of the reason this morning's rains fizzled has to do in part with the large winter storm bringing a a blinding blizzard to the Texas panhandle today.  The main energy with this system shifted a bit north, robbing us with the chance to see anything more than a few passing showers this morning.  Stronger storms are developing, however to our east into parts of Louisiana and Mississippi.

Our gusty winds will last into early evening, so bundle up if you're headed to the first night of rodeo performances and be prepared for several chilly mornings and cool afternoons for most of the rest of this week.

TONIGHT: Clear, but cool and windy.  Temperatures falling through the low 50s and upper 40s.  Gusty west and northwest winds 20-25 early, gradually dropping to 10-15 mph after midnight.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR TUESDAY IS: 8
TUESDAY: Sunny, breezy and much cooler.  Morning temperatures in the low 40s only rise to the mid 60s.  Steady west and northwest winds 15-20 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR WEDNESDAY IS: 8
WEDNESDAY: Mostly sunny and continued cool.  Morning temperatures in the low 40s with some upper 30s in northern neighborhoods.  Highs near 70°. Breezy with north and northwest winds 8-12 mph.

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Another Stormy Monday

By Gene Norman

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Break out the umbrellas as you head back to work and school.  For the second Monday in a row wet weather moves in and there could be a few rumbles of thunder thrown in as well.  Here's a depiction of the rain headed here by the Monday morning commute as well as a major winter storm for the Texas panhandle and most of Oklahoma:

Most of the action in Houston will be done just after lunchtime, but there could still be a few lingering showers in the afternoon.  The rain is being pushed this way by a cold front and in it's wake cool weather returns for the rest of the week.  By Tuesday, you can trade the umbrella and rain gear for sweaters and coats.  Also, after the rain moves out Monday, expect a very windy afternoon.  Dry air quickly moves in after the rain leading to rapid evaporation and elevating the fire danger.  Gusty winds are possible up to 40 mph making boating hazardous.  

TONIGHT: Mostly cloudy with periods of light rain developing after midnight.  Mild with temperatures in the low to mid 60s.  East to southeast winds 5-10 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR MONDAY IS: 6
MONDAY: Scattered showers and thunderstorms developing during the morning commute and lasting through early afternoon.  Some storms could be briefly severe with gusty wind the main threat.  Mild with temperatures in the mid to upper 60s early, but then dropping into the low 60s in the late afternoon.  Southerly winds with the rain 10-15 mph, then becoming gusty out of the west and northwest after the rain 25-35 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR TUESDAY IS: 8
TUESDAY: Sunny, breezy and much cooler.  Morning temperatures in the low 40s only rise to the mid 60s.  Steady west and northwest winds 15-20 mph.

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Rodeo Parade Time

By Gene Norman

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Hope you're ready for one of the great Houston traditions - the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The trail riders arrived in Memorial Park this afternoon and tomorrow morning, they'll parade downtown. We've had a lot of peek-a-boo sunshine as low clouds lingered behind yesterday's rain. The reason for the delay in clearing is a common rodeo-time weather pattern of overrunning. Surface northeast winds are opposed by upper-level southwesterly winds, keeping the moisture streaming in. By tomorrow, all of the upper-level winds shift to the northwest allowing for the skies to clear up.  The parade and rodeo run will begin with a cool feel, so bring something warm as you huddle in the downtown canyons, rooting on the riders and floats.

TONIGHT: Partly cloudy skies early begin to clear out after midnight.  Cool with lows in the mid 40s. North winds 5-10 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR SATURDAY IS: 8
SATURDAY: Early clouds give way to mostly sunny skies. Cool start becomes a milder afternoon with highs close to 70°. Northeast winds 5-10 mph.

NORMAN NUMBER FOR SUNDAY IS: 7
SUNDAY: Mostly sunny skies early become partly to mostly cloudy skies. There may be a few brief isolated showers developing by afternoon. Highs in the upper 60s to low 70s. Northeast winds in the morning becoming southeasterly by afternoon 5-10 mph.


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Storms On The Way

By Gene Norman
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Today's rains were a nuisance, but tomorrow's could be quite rough.  One of the reasons will be the quick warm-up we'll experience overnight.  For most of today, it's been cloudy and quite breezy due to a steady east wind.  However, the winds will change to the south and southeast overnight and tomorrow as a warm front moves northward from the Gulf.  That will help trigger showers overnight, but more importantly set the stage for strong storms to erupt as a cold front collides with the warmer air.

Here's the latest threat from the Storm Prediction Center:

The large yellow area indicates where storms with gusty wind, hail and isolated tornadoes are likely.  This depiction shows when the storm threat could be greatest, around mid-day:

The blue line indicates the front which may slow down a bit as it heads for the coast.  So fans heading to the first night of the World Championship Bar-B-Q may still need the rain gear and jacket.  Also, clouds may linger into part of Friday as the trail riders arrive in Memorial Park.  It's now looking more likely that skies will clear out a bit before Saturday and the Rodeo Parade and Rodeo Run.

TONIGHT: Cloudy with periods of light, spotty rain.  Showers become more widespread by the morning rush hour.  Temperatures gradually rise from the upper 50s to low to mid 60s overnight.  East winds 10-15 mph become south and southeast 10-15 mph by morning.


NORMAN NUMBER FOR THURSDAY: 4
THURSDAY: Strong to severe thunderstorms developing from the morning through the mid-afternoon, then slow clearing.  Some storms may bring gusty wind and hail.  Temperatures climb to mid 70s as the storms arrive, then drop into the low to mid 60s during the afternoon.  Gusty southerly winds 15-20 mph early with the storms become west to northwest 10-15 mph by afternoon.


NORMAN NUMBER FOR FRIDAY: 7
FRIDAY: Cool start with lingering morning clouds becoming mostly sunny by afternoon.  Highs climb into the upper 60s with dry and breezy north winds 5-10 mph.

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