DETROIT – Those of you reading this during the afternoon as you get ready for tonight’s big Charity Preview at the North American International Auto Show should prepare for rain, as steady rain ahead of an approaching cold front will greet you at least on your way to the Preview.
Since I don’t expect the rain to end downtown until between 10:00 and 11:00 PM, this is one of those events where the longer you stay the better off you are!
Temperatures this evening will be relatively mild, and should hold near 40° (4° Celsius for our Canadian friends).
Light south wind will shift to the west around midnight and increase to 10 to 20 mph behind the cold front. At that point, temperatures will drop sharply, and should be in the upper 20s west to near 30° east (-1° Celsius) by dawn.
CAUTION: just like last Sunday, wet surfaces will freeze and become icy, so use a lot of caution if you’ll either be out very late tonight (meaning toward dawn).
Salt crews should be able to easily mitigate this, but I still want you to be aware…especially on lesser used roads, sidewalks, and driveways.
Saturday will be a breezy, but dry day. Colder air moving in will be only partially offset by partial sunshine, so I expect steady temperatures in the upper 20s (-2° Celsius) for the first two-thirds of the day, before starting to fall by mid-afternoon.
West winds at 10 to 20 mph will create wind chills in the teens (-9° Celsius), so bundle up if you’ll be parking a fair distance from Cobo and walking to the Auto Show.
Increasing clouds Saturday night, with lows in the upper teens (-8° Celsius).
Snow showers increase on Sunday as the core of some Arctic air moves across the Great Lakes and re-energizes our lake effect snow machine.
It’s impossible to predict exactly where the dominant snow bands will set up, because even a slight ten degree difference in the forecasted wind direction would have enormous ramifications. However, I will say that, strictly based upon my experience with these types of situations, it’s possible that we’ll see a band set up somewhere near or in between I-94 and I-696/I-96.
Most models broad-brush our area with between one-half inch and one inch of snow Sunday, but amounts would be higher under any lake effect bands that remain nearly stationary.
Temperatures on Sunday will start in the low 20s (-5° Celsius), and then fall into the upper teens (-7° Celsius) by mid-to-late afternoon. A brisk west wind will create wind chills in the single numbers (-15° Celsius).
Snow showers become more scattered Sunday night, with lows in the upper single numbers (-14° Celsius).
Mostly cloudy and still breezy on Monday, with highs in the mid-teens (-9° Celsius).
Becoming mostly clear Monday night, with lows in the mid-single numbers (-15° Celsius).
Mostly sunny on Tuesday, with highs near 20° (-7° Celsius).
The rest of the week looks dry, with highs gradually rising into the upper 20s (-2° Celsius) and overnight lows rising into the upper teens (-8° Celsius) by Friday.
If the ECMWF model is correct (as opposed to the GFS), next weekend will continue dry, with temperatures warming up into the mid to upper 30s (2° to 3° Celsius)!