12/30 – Rob Knight’s “Sunshine Returns” Morning Forecast

We return back to seasonal conditions across the area following a recent frontal passage. Many areas will see plenty of sunshine today with cool temperatures today. It still looks like both Tuesday and Wednesday morning will be on the cold side from a settling high-pressure across the northern Gulf coast. Focus then begins to shift on the next approaching storm system due across the area later this week.

To the west, a very strong upper-level low-pressure will dives deep across the Mexican Baja Peninsula. A plume of enhanced moisture residing in the SW Gulf will get picked up and stretched out across the area. Look for cloud cover to begin to increase early Wednesday morning while staying mostly dry. The atmosphere will quickly moisten early Thursday morning with rain increasing in coverage and intensity. Guidance remains in good agreement that a band of heavy rainfall will set up somewhere near or slightly west/east of a line from Lake Charles to Jackson Ms, where rainfall totals could range anywhere between 2 to 4 inches before all said and done early Friday – with locally higher amounts likely. The basic idea here is a good late-week soaker is in the forecast for just about the entire area, and will continue to keep a close eye on this system as we near closer. Following this system for the first weekend of 2020 shows temperatures to be on the chilly side.