Early December chill stays in place into the late week

The low level moisture and stubborn cloud cover hung tough across the Ohio Valley so it was another dreary and cold start to Wednesday for most folks. Heavier coats were needed early with temperatures in the low to mid-20s and it was a slow process trying to warm things up at all with the clouds taking a bit of time to scour out. We did finally see some sunshine breaking through the clouds down south and to the east as high pressure briefly nosed in from the southwest but unfortunately most locations only managed to reach the upper 20s and low 30s for highs here in the Bluegrass with a few spots down south sneaking into the mid-30s thanks to a little bit of clearing.

A fast moving but weak frontal boundary drops through the region into Thursday bringing some additional clouds but it should be mainly dry as the best snow shower chances remain just to our north. One thing this front will do is bring a reinforcing shot of colder air to Central and Eastern Kentucky so look for another unseasonably cold day. With mainly cloudy skies. limited sunshine and a steady north to northwest breeze, afternoon highs should only reach the low and mid-30s on Thursday, which is nearly 15 degrees below average for early December.

Closing out the week on Friday, a stronger area of low pressure should pass by well to our south but enough moisture may stream northward to squeeze out a few rain and snow showers as we end the week. The model data of course is struggling with the placement and type of precipitation but the most favorable area will be across Southern and Southeastern Kentucky. With temperatures expected to reach the upper 30s for afternoon highs, early snow showers should give way to a rain/snow mix through the afternoon and hopefully any impacts will be minimal. It looks to be a decent start to the weekend, albeit a chilly one with a mix of clouds and sunshine along with afternoon highs remaining in the upper 30s/low 40s.

A series of “clipper systems” will dive in from the northwest toward the end of the weekend and into early next week but the timing and strength of these are in question as the model data notoriously struggles with getting a handle on these. Right now there is the potential of another rain/snow scenario late Sunday and into Monday as the unseasonably cold air sticks around. Afternoon highs will struggle to get out of the 30s so the overall colder pattern looks to stay locked in over our area for the foreseeable future.