Dakota Storm Center: Thursday's Weather Blog

9:00pm

Overview

There is a low pressure system centered just north of the NE U.S. with a cold front stretched south, over the Atlantic Ocean and cutting back through the northern Gulf of Mexico. This system is bringing scattered snow and rain to much of the Eastern side of our nation. A weaker low is over the upper Midwest with a fizzling cold front stretched west, through the Dakotas and into Canada.

Discussion

Today we saw clearing skies with strong winds. Through the afternoon & evening hours skies continued clearing, becoming mostly sunny just before sunset. There were a few light showers on radar (but they were very isolated) and temperatures were in a seasonable range. Highs ranged through the 40s & 50s across the state. The warm area on the map included the western edge of North Dakota with highs well into the 50s.

Across the Northern Plains, there is a low pressure system that continues to move East through the Upper Midwest. A cold front is stretched West through the Dakotas and there is little to no precip associated with this system. Closer to home we were seeing fair to partly cloudy skies with continued gradual clearing and winds continue to taper off. There will be a little bit of a break to this week's strong winds, Friday. Winds will pick back up as we go into the weekend. Also, a dry weather pattern will return and Saturday is shaping up to bring another round of increased fire danger weather. Temperatures will briefly spike into the 60s & 70s with dry conditions and strong winds. Saturday night & Sunday, a weak low pressure system and cold front will move through the Dakotas. Little to no precip is expected but temps will fall back into a seasonable range due to this feature.

Hour By Hour forecast for Friday 4/8

Headlines include a departing system that is moving through the Midwest. Expect in & out light clouds tonight & tomorrow, resulting in plenty of sunshine. Winds will also calm down for a short time on Friday. The next few days will be rain free.

Through the rest of tonight & Friday

Low rain chances are expected with hit & miss clouds through tonight & tomorrow. Wind speeds will calm down overnight with more clearing expected after Midnight and temperatures dropping into the 20s for lows. Tomorrow, expect plenty of sunshine with in & out clouds and another round of seasonable temps. Also, winds will not be as strong as they have been this week.

7day planner

Expect mostly sunny to partly cloudy skies and seasonable temps during the rest of our work week. This weekend will bring a relatively quiet weather pattern with warmer temps (on Saturday) to go along with more sunshine. Through the beginning of the work week, expect continued sunshine with hit & miss clouds and temps ranging through the 50s. Only a few systems will move through the Dakotas during the next 7 days (Sunday & Wednesday), but rain chances are still low at this point.

Tonight, expect fair to partly cloudy skies with wind speeds tapering off and a cool feel. Lows 22-29 with a NW wind calming to 2-12mph.

Friday we will see more sunshine with in & out clouds and another round of seasonable temps. Highs will be on either side of 50 with a North/NE wind 5-15mph.

Friday night, expect fair to partly cloudy skies with a cool feel. Lows will be in the 20s with a NE/SE wind 5-15mph.

Saturday, expect mostly sunny to partly cloudy skies with in & out clouds and a breeze returning. Temps will climb into an unseasonably warm range. Highs 63-72 with a South wind 15-25mph.

Saturday night, we will see fair to partly cloudy skies with a cool feel. Lows 35-41 with a NW wind 5-15mph.