Today's Weather Outlook
Even though the calendar has flipped to May, winter-like weather will be sprinkled in for a few spots nationally for the second day of the work week. Umbrellas and rain accessories will be unavoidable from the Four Corners to New England as well.
A long, wavering front will end up draped from near the U.S.-Canada border in the East to the south-central Plains and Colorado and northern Rocky Front Range by day’s end. Rain and embedded thunderstorms to begin the day in southeastern Missouri and northeastern Arkansas to western Tennessee and Kentucky will diminish by late morning, with a second wave of activity likely during the afternoon and evening. This activity could pack damaging wind gusts, large hail, and a few tornadoes, particularly near Interstates 30 and 40 from northeastern Texas to far western Tennessee. Strong thunderstorm could also rumble from western New York State to northern Maine during late afternoon and evening.
Rain and thunderstorms are in the forecast from Indianapolis and Cincinnati to Cleveland and Erie, Pa. Farther west across the Four Corners, and while not a washout, showers and a few thunderstorms could interrupt outdoor plans in Flagstaff, Ariz., and Albuquerque, N.M.
Farther north, cities such as Denver and Boulder, Colo., will have rain switch to a rain/snow mix and then snow by late this afternoon and evening. Minor snowfall accumulation is possible, with up to an inch occurring on grassy and elevated surfaces before sunset. The taller Colorado Rocky Front Range and Laramie Range and foothills in Wyoming will be digging out from several inches to locally more than a foot of snow throughout today. Even Cheyenne, Wyo., will likely receive a plowable snow by day’s end.
The only other weather blips will be limited to the Sierra Nevada and interior and southern Florida today. This is where showers and thunderstorms will develop in the afternoon and evening, with snow sticking to the tallest passes of the Sierra Nevada.
The Northwest, northern Plains to Upper Midwest and most of the Great Lakes, and Atlantic Seaboard to the Gulf Coast and Texas will have a precipitation-free day.
A shocking temperature change will occur today for much of the nation’s midsection and Mississippi Valley to the Ohio Valley. Thirties, 40s, and 50s will be common, with lower to middle 60s immediately behind the front before falling during the day. The Southwest deserts and banked up against the Colorado and northern Rocky Front Ranges will be considerably chillier as well with highs ranging from the 20s, 30s, and 40s to the cool middle to upper 70s.
The two northern U.S. corners, Texas, and much of the Atlantic Seaboard will enjoy a spring or summer-like preview with the mercury climbing through the 70s, 80s, and 90s! A couple spots near the Texas-Mexico border could flirt with triple-digit heat today.