High pressure off to our west and a calm upper level pattern will keep conditions on the warm and dry side for the work week ahead.  Temps will be gradually increasing each day, and by Thursday through Saturday, some folks could be seeing temps reaching 15+ degrees above average for this time of the year.  By late in the week, we’ll see south winds increasing and a surge of gulf moisture advancing northward across the central and eastern half of the state.  This will set the stage for rain and storm chances to return by next weekend as a Pacific cold front arrives in tandem with an upper level disturbance from the west.  Best chances of rain at this time look to reside along and east of I-35.  The front will push through quickly next Saturday which means the rain will be here and gone without much fanfare.

For today and tonight, a cold front is slipping through the state as I type, but it will not have much of an impact on temperatures, nor will it bring any rain chances along with it.  Highs will reach the 50s to 60s for the northern and central portions of the state, with 70s further south along the coast and into the Rio Grande Valley and Plains region.  Lows tonight, chilly and seasonal with some 20s and 30s for the panhandle and western Texas, 30s for northern Texas, 40s for south central and the upper coast, with 50s expected for coastal and deep south Texas.

We don’t usually go too far distant in our forecast, but it does appear that we’ll be looking at a pattern shift after next weekend which could bring a parade of cold fronts through along with additional chances for rain.  Before anyone asks, it’s too far out to ascertain whether any of the cold fronts will bring wintry precip with them, but we’ll be keeping an eye on it and will let you know as the forecast evolves.  For now, take a look at the pleasant highs we’ll be seeing this work week!