DETROIT – Right on schedule, a potent Arctic cold front is crossing southeast Michigan. Temperatures ahead of the front, boosted by southwest winds, have reached the mid to upper 40s (7-9 degrees Celsius).
Once the front passes by, your winds will shift to the northwest, gust to or above 30 mph, temperatures will immediately plunge, and we’ll already be in the 20s (-2 to -3 degrees Celsius) by this evening.
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A few light rain showers may precede the front, and some scattered snow showers (no impact to roads) may follow the front. My friends at the National Weather Service have also picked up on something: strong wind shear combined with the very cold air mass flowing over the relatively warm waters of Lake Huron this afternoon could even produce a waterspout or two, so keep an eye out offshore if you live on the southern Lake Huron shoreline, and post the photos on Storm Pins if you manage to safely catch one, we’ll show it on the air.
Skies will clear overnight, with lows near 20 degrees (-6 to -7 degrees Celsius) in our Urban Heat Island, and in the upper teens (-8 degrees Celsius) in the more rural areas away from the city. Northwest wind should diminish to 10-15 mph.
Mostly sunny for MOST of us on Friday, with highs in the upper 20s to near 30 degrees (-1 to -2 degrees Celsius). North wind at 5 to 10 mph. One thing I continue to monitor is the potential for some lake effect snow showers off of Lake Huron for the eastern Thumb region.
Where these bands set up is directly the result of the exact wind trajectory over the lake, and Friday’s north wind may be enough to bring a few bands inland. At this point, I don’t expect any high-impact weather from this, but it is still something to keep in mind for those of you up that way. Here are some maps specific to your area timing it out:
Friday’s sunrise is at 7:18 a.m., and Friday’s sunset is at 5:16 p.m.
We’ll get at least partial sunshine on Saturday, but the day will remain dry. Highs warming into the upper 30s (4 degrees Celsius), although this is still well below our average high of 52 degrees (11 degrees Celsius).
Becoming cloudy Saturday evening, so we’ll be fine for our date-night activities. However, late at night, we have the chance for some light rain, light snow, or a light rain/snow mix. Lows near 30 degrees (-1 degree Celsius) means that there could even be a slick spot or two early Sunday morning.
The rain/snow mix chance continues into the day on Sunday. Precipitation amounts still look to be light. Highs in the low 40s (5-6 degrees Celsius).
Mostly cloudy Sunday night, with lows in the low 30s (0 degrees Celsius).
Becoming partly cloudy on Monday, with highs in the mid 40s (6-7 degrees Celsius).
Mostly clear Monday night, with lows in the low 30s (0 degrees Celsius).
Mostly sunny on Tuesday, with highs in the upper 40s (9 degrees Celsius).
Increasing clouds Tuesday night, with lows in the upper 30s (4 degrees Celsius).
Rain chances look pretty solid on Wednesday, with highs near 50 degrees (10 degrees Celsius).
Partly cloudy on Thursday, with highs again near 50 degrees (10 degrees Celsius).
We have another rain chance on Friday ahead of a strong cold front. Highs in the mid 50s (12 degrees Celsius).
Although the timing may change, right now it appears that the cold front will cross our area either late Friday or Friday night. This will usher in another Arctic air mass next weekend, although probably not quite as potent as the one arriving tonight.
Grammar question
Why do we say one "degree," but zero "degrees"? I understand that one degree (or minus one degree) is singular, so we say “degree.” However, zero is not multiple degrees, so why do we say “zero degrees?” I’ve always wondered about this. If any of you know, post your thoughts in the comments section for this article on the Local 4 Facebook page. I’ll be looking!