Winter-like pattern stays in place for the weekend

It was a fitting end to what has been a pretty dreary and cold week of weather across Central and Eastern Kentucky with more clouds and unseasonably cold temperatures, even by early December standards. Our far southern counties saw some light snow during the early morning hours, which was enough to cover/coat the ground in spots and create a few slick roadways in the process. Clouds stayed locked in through the day for most locations and as a result temperatures struggled yet again with afternoon highs only in the mid to upper 30s.

Heading into Saturday look for more cloud cover and chilly air across Central and Eastern Kentucky. A cold front will be over the Great lakes but a wave of energy will drop south ahead of it through the Ohio Valley keeping more clouds around and there may be enough moisture with it to squeeze out a few flurries and/or sprinkles depending on how temperatures shake out. Even with a light southwest wind, afternoon highs will struggle to get out of the 30s so you’ll need the winter coats for any pre-holiday activities you may have planned.

The active weather pattern with a parade of weak, nuisance storm systems will carry on for the second half of the weekend and into early next week. A wave of low pressure should cruise through the region Sunday with more clouds and a few light rain showers around as temperatures stay “warm” enough for things to fall in the liquid form as afternoon highs manage to climb into the low-40s. There is some colder air that will follow suit behind the departing wave so a few light snow showers may be possible Sunday night before we dry out with more cold air settling in for Monday. Given the recent pattern of lingering and stubborn cloud cover, it wouldn’t be a shock to see some clouds hang around into Monday and even if the sun does return, it’s going to be a cold start to the week with highs only in the low 30s.

We may finally see temperatures closer to average for afternoon highs heading into the middle part of next week as a breezy southwest wind picks up ahead of the first of several waves of low pressure that should dive through the Ohio Valley later in the period. Temperatures look to jump back into the low 40s on Tuesday before surging into upper 40s mid-week as our rain chances pick up as well. Winds will be gusty around 25 to 30 miles per hour so even though it should be milder, it will still feel cool thanks to the wind. The model data isn’t synced up fully with the timing of the aforementioned waves of low pressure but it looks to be an unsettled period with rain shower chances being replaced by a few snow showers as colder air returns toward the end of next week.