Not Quite A Silent Night

First, let me wish you all a Merry Christmas!  Thanks for supporting this blog by reading it and letting others know about it.

 

Today has been a much nicer day than I expected.  A cool front did slide through early today and is it stalling along the coast.  Nevertheless, skies have remained mostly sunny.  However, the front will move back inland as a warm front.  An approaching upper-level disturbance will be the trigger for strong to severe storms to develop overnight.  So while the little ones may be dreaming of sugar plums, they and everyone else may be rudely awakened by the sounds of thunder.  Be sure you and your family know what to do if the storms indeed become rough early in the morning.  Maybe the Christmas present exchange might need to be moved up to tonight.

 

Here's a look at where the roughest storms are likeliest from midnight until 7 am Christmas morning:

 

 

 

The storms will move eastward into parts of the Southeast on Christmas day.  A major severe weather outbreak with tornadoes is very likely for parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.  If you're headed that way, be aware and let relatives and friends there know the risk:

 

 

 

As for snow - yes, there could be rain changing to snow with light accumulations less than an inch for the Texas panhandle and the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

 

TONIGHT: Increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Strong to severe thunderstorms develop in the predawn hours lasting until sunrise.  Some storms may contain damaging wind gusts and there could be brief isolated tornadoes.  Lows in the low to mid 60s.  Southeast winds 10-15 mph.

TUESDAY'S NORMAN NUMBER: 5

TUESDAY, CHRISTMAS DAY: Strong to severe storms in the morning, diminishing and moving east by early afternoon.  Skies clear by late afternoon as gusty northwest wind blow at 15-20 mph.  Temperatures in the low 70s early fall into the 50s by afternoon.

WEDNESDAY'S NORMAN NUMBER: 7

WEDNESDAY: Freezing cold morning then remaining very cool and dry despite abundant sunshine. Highs barely reach 50°. North winds 5-10 mph.

 

Gene Norman
Follow @genenormanwx