Warm through Thursday, Storms and a cold front approaches by Friday

Much of the southern United States is in the middle of warmer weather this afternoon with a stalled frontal boundary near the Ohio River. Temperatures are in the 70s and 80s to the south of it while winter has invaded the northern states. Snow is flying this afternoon over a large part of Minnesota, northern Wisconsin, and eastern North Dakota. That cold air will stay locked away to the north for now, but a cold front will be on the way down just in time for the end of the week.

Before that happens, we have a few more warm days ahead. We look to get into the low to mid 80s for both Wednesday and Thursday, and some of us may flirt with the mid 80s on Wednesday. Overnight temperatures look to stay mild as well, with lows in the upper 50s and lower 60s. We're definitely getting a break from the chilly temperatures, at least for the next few days.

The cold front currently to our north begins to approach the area on Friday. A shower or two is possible after midnight Thursday night, but most folks will probably stay dry until during the day on Friday. We look to have a good chance of scattered showers and thunderstorms along and ahead of the cold front Friday afternoon and evening. Some of the showers may last into early Saturday, but unless the front trends slower, Saturday's forecast may trend drier for our immediate area. Temperatures behind the front don't drop off a great deal either, but it will be a bit cooler. Afternoon highs on Saturday will be back into the lower 70s, moderating toward the mid 70s again as we head into Sunday and Monday before yet another cold front approaches. At this early stage of the game, it's looking like next week may be kind of wet across the area as a front stalls nearby and southwest flow aloft gets situated over the area.