Jan 8: Southern Severe, Record Warmth and Colder Weather Ahead
The system we mentioned earlier this week has started is progression across the country. Widespread rain and storms, mild temperatures and some snow across the Four Corners has been the calling card so far today: By Friday, another round of severe weather will occur across the Southeast: This includes the risk for damaging winds and tornadoes! Storms will be ongoing Friday morning and then redevelop in the afternoon. The below forecast radar goes from Friday 7 am ET to Sat 7 am ET: The severe threat will continue into Saturday, pushing further east to include cities like Charlotte: The rain will be heavy as well. The below forecast shows rain totals from Fri 7 AM ET to Sun 7 AM ET: We mentioned earlier this week that this is mostly good news with the widespread drought that has developed across not only the Southeast but most of the country. In fact, California is the only state with no drought at all: Ahead of the system, several record highs and record warm lows are possible Friday and Saturday. On Friday morning alone, there are over 60 record warm lows possible from South Texas to Michigan: For Friday’s highs, nearly 30 record highs are possible: Saturday morning will bring another round of impressive record warm lows, this time reaching from the Northeast to the Southeast: Behind rain and storms, the Southeast will be below average next week. The rest of the country will have above average temperatures. Keep in mind though that we are entering the coldest part of the year. Even though the temperatures will be above average they won’t be necessarily warm: Looking into the later half of January, cold temperatures look to take over for much of the Eastern US: It is too early to tell if that will lead to any snow storms across the region. The cold air will be in place, so the possibility is there!
Jan 6: First Significant Storm of 2026
The first widespread weather event of 2026 will take place later this week. It will spread snow, rain, and storms from the Four Corners to the Eastern US. This system will come in two distinct waves that we will break down in today’s weather update: Thursday: Friday: Saturday: First up will be much needed snow across the Four Corners, including Colorado and Utah. While California has made up for its early-season snow deficit, the interior West is still running well below where it should be this time of year with many stations reporting less than 50% of where they should be for snow pack: Snow will start across this region late Wednesday and last through Friday. While it won’t completely erase the deficit, it will bring widespread snow especially to the higher elevations: After bringing snow to the Southwest, the initial wave of precipitation then moves into the central part of the country and will bring mostly rain. Temperatures will be well-above average and even record-breaking, making it too warm for snow. The overnight lows will be the most impressive with over 130 record warm lows possible Thursday through Saturday morning: The first round of rain will be focused across the Central US and up into the Great Lakes. Below is the 48 hr rain forecast from 12 AM CT Wed to 12 AM CT Fri: This rain will also bring the chance for severe thunderstorms Wednesday night and Thursday: For that same time period you can see very little snow is expected as it is just too warm: As the next wave of precipitation develops, it will meet cooler air brought down by the first round of rain. This means more snow will fall across the Central US especially into Iowa and Wisconsin. This snow will fall from Fri morning across the Southern Plains to early Sunday am across the Upper Midwest: You can see the progression of both rounds of precipitation from early Thu AM to Sunday AM below: For the Eastern part of the US, the main threat from this system will be rain and even some severe storms. Most of the precipitation for this region will fall as rain with only the areas near the Great Lakes getting snow like we mentioned above: The rain will be heavy at times, especially across the Southeast from Eastern Tennessee to Mississippi: This is good news for parts of the Southeast that have seen drought expand over the Fall and Winter months: Unfortunately, not much of that rain will make it to the area that needs it most, Florida, with only the far Western Panhandle expected to get anything significant: