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Freezing Drizzle and Icy Roads Continue Tonight

It is not a pleasant evening across the state with a low deck of clouds and a foggy mist for most. Everyone is under the clouds tonight but others are much warmer than their neighbors. Temperatures along the Gulf Coast from Beaumont west to Houston down into Deep South Texas are in the 50s this evening as warm air advection has helped bring warmer air back onshore. In fact this warm air advection is responsible for all these clouds and mist across Texas tonight. The warm air advection process starts a few thousand feet above the ground with southerly winds. Over time this more mild environment warms down to the surface in a process known as warm air advection. With a cold airmass trapped at the surface with warm air a few hundred feet above it there is quite an inversion layer. This inversion layer is what is helping to create the low clouds. Warm Air Advection is causing just enough lift to produce the mist and very light rain. Where temperatures are below freezing this drizzle is creating a thin layer of ice on most exposed objects. The Texas Panhandle, South Plains, Permian Basin, Concho Valley, Big Country, Northwest Texas, and the northwestern half of North Texas are all seeing freezing drizzle. The freezing line is sitting right on top of the D/FW Metroplex at 10 PM. We should see temperatures hover around freezing or rise just above it through Sunday morning. We’ll see temperatures climb above freezing on Sunday as the freezing line moves north. Until then the freezing drizzle will keep roads icy and slick. Winter Weather Advisories are in effect for the Permian Basin, Concho Valley, Big Country, and Northwest Texas due to the potential for light ice accumulations tonight. Remember freezing drizzle is notorious for creating ‘black ice’ and making it difficult to spot it on roads.

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We’ll experience a nice warm up on Monday and Tuesday with temperatures returning to the 60s and 70s across Texas. That sure beats what we’ve dealt with this week. However, Mother Nature isn’t done with us just yet. Another powerful cold front will arrive on Tuesday and Wednesday dropping temperatures right back down into the cold category. Not only will we have to deal with cold air but there are signs a storm system could bring another round of wintery weather to parts of the state by mid-week. Right now it looks like the primary threat zone would be from Northwest Texas into North Texas with sleet possible. We’ll continue to monitor trends over the next few days but it certainly is possible we may be dealing with the umpteenth winter storm by Wednesday into Wednesday Night. Thus is the way Texas weather works!

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David Reimer

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