HEADLINES
– Brighter but colder today. Some moderation this weekend.
– Snow showers in the northern part of Indiana Saturday.
– Highs go above average next week!
TODAY’S MAP
We’re a little ahead on snow for the season in Indy. Last year’s total at this point: 4 inches!
Still looks fairly light for snow over the next couple weeks.
NWS TECHNICAL DISCUSSION
Another cold winter day expected for Central Indiana. Surface high pressure passes by south of the region in the Tennessee Valley, keeping the cold air locked in place at the surface. Latest satellite imagery continues to show a clearing trend from north to south as drier air advects in ahead of the high pressure system. Leftover moisture and low stratus from snow showers yesterday remains stuck under a low level inversion across South Central Indiana from Bloomington to Columbus and points south toward the Ohio River. This area of clouds is keeping low temperatures in the upper teens, while areas outside of any cloud cover have dropped into the single digits. Expect this area of clouds to slowly dissipate through the morning hours. With high pressure being the dominant weather influence over the Ohio Valley today, expect much drier conditions to persist through the day with mostly sunny skies. The sun will be deceiving though as temperatures will struggle to rise into the teens and low 20s. A low level subsidence inversion should prevent deep mixing during the day, keeping the mixed boundary layer at or below 1 km agl. Weak mixing will result in southwest winds around 10 mph during the afternoon hours keeping wind chill values in the teens. .LONG TERM (Saturday through Thursday)... Issued at 309 AM EST Fri Jan 24 2025 A relatively quiet and significantly milder stretch of weather is likely for the long term period, with minor exceptions. The upper level pattern will be largely quasizonal to weakly cyclonic, with broad surface high pressure generally in control across the southeastern and north central CONUS. This will allow for mostly dry conditions over the weekend into mid week next week, and for temperatures to moderate significantly, with highs and lows much nearer to seasonal normals. A mainly dry long term period is expected; however watching Saturday into Sunday morning for the potential for snow showers and flurries along and north of the I-70 corridor. Upper level zonal flow pattern will be present with Indiana placed within the right entrance region of a 130 kt jet to the north. Cyclonic flow will be present across the Great Lakes due to a parent low all the way up in the Hudson Bay. Guidance shows good moisture advection in the mid and upper levels as strong upper level westerlies bring pacific moisture eastward across the CONUS. A 30-35kt LLJ develops ahead of a weak cold front extending from the parent low southwestward into the midwest. Cross sectional views at the atmosphere do show a dry low to mid level, potentially preventing much precipitation from reaching the ground. However, enhanced lift from the right entrance region of the jet and lift in the lower levels associated with the cold front could be enough to squeeze out a few snow showers and flurries Saturday through Sunday morning across Central and North Central Indiana. Southerly flow ahead of the cold front should allow for temperatures to finally rise above freezing into the mid 30s during the day Saturday; however low dew points and sub-freezing wet bulb temperatures should help keep P-type all snow due to snow-melt cooling processes. The coolest day of the long term period is likely to be Sunday due to weak cold air advection behind the cold front, with highs in the mid 20s to to lower 30s. High pressure remains south of the region for the first half of the new week; however strong warm air advection aloft will kick out the colder airmass in place allowing for temperatures to moderate into the 40s. The next opportunity for precipitation will come toward the end of the forecast period in the middle of next week, as a closed low, which will slowly drift through California and the Desert Southwest next week, begins to pull northeast toward the Great Lakes and be reabsorbed into a larger longwave trough shifting eastward into the central US. Chances will remain low at this time due to model inconsistencies.
INDY SEVEN DAY FORECAST
Today: Mostly sunny morning and midday. Clouds thicken in the later afternoon. High 22.
Tonight: Partly to mostly cloudy. Single digit chill. Temps slowly rise after midnight. Low 16.
Saturday: Cloudy morning, with flurries. Mostly cloudy afternoon. High 38.
Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy. Low 23.
Sunday: Mostly cloudy. High 30.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy. Low 18.
Monday: Sunny. High 37.
Monday Night: Mostly clear. Low 30.
Tuesday: Mostly sunny. High 42.
Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy. Low 30.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny. High 41.
Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy. Low 24.
Thursday: Partly sunny. High 36.





Never miss me! Subscribe for free. My Huge Radar has real-time weather tracking, current temperatures, and severe weather watches and warnings. Get detailed Indiana conditions by clicking here. Click here to see my central Indiana 7-Day Forecast. Follow these links to get my forecasts for Lafayette, Muncie, Hendricks County, and Hamilton County. Need a second opinion? Click here for central Indiana National Weather Service forecasts. (Some charts via WeatherBELL.)
Leave a Reply