Iowa Weather Report March 21st 2015: Spring in Action

SPRING INTO ACTIVITY: As we head into the weekend, today will be partly to mostly sunny across the state with readings in the upper 40s north to the lower 60s in the south. The next disturbance will move into the state on Sunday and this could bring a plethora of precipitation to the area. With cold air to the north and warmer air to the south we may see some of the precipitation in the form of sleet or freezing rain in the northern counties of the state Sunday night into early Monday morning. Some wet snow could be mixed in with this as well. Farther to the south, rain will be likely and there could even be a rumble of thunder. Highs on Sunday will range from near 40 north and northeast to the lower 70s southwest.

SPRING INTO NEXT WEEK: The disturbance will move away early on Monday with some lingering precipitation over the eastern counties lasting through the morning hours. Skies will partially clear but not enough to really boost the temperatures a whole lot. The next system will be on the heels of the last one and will be moving into the state on Tuesday. This one looks stronger and could bring all rain to the state as temperatures will be sufficiently in the 50s and 60s for the most part. There is a chance of some thunderstorms with this system Tuesday afternoon into Tuesday night and some of those could become strong. Severe weather is possible but at this point looks to be confined just to our south over Missouri and Kansas, however this could change and we’ll monitor for any changes throughout the weekend. For the rest of the week, temperatures look to head back below seasonal levels again with the pattern looking a bit unsettled with a chance of some rain and or snow around but nothing organized at this point.

MOVING INTO APRIL: Looking at the extended period, the temperatures look to be up and down during the period with the GFS showing a significant storm a few days into April that may bring more precipitation to the state at that time. The active weather pattern looks to continue and that is a good thing given how dry it is across the state.