Starkville Monday Outlook

This is going to be a new feature I'm going to write each day that will focus on the weather affecting Starkville and surrounding areas.

MONDAY
An Eastern U.S. trough that was responsible for our fall-like weather last week broke down over the weekend as a strong trough in the west moved onshore and amplified a ridge downstream over the Plains and Deep South. Consequently, our preview of of fall weather ended as morning lows and afternoon highs crept up over the weekend. This trend will continue today as will we be underneath an upper-level ridge, and warm low-level temperatures (~15 C) should have no problem being mixed to the surface.

Moisture will be limited again today as we remain are cut-off from the Gulf of Mexico, but winds will slowly turn more southeasterly early Tuesday morning. This slow wind shift is the direct result of a strong ridge in the Northeast U.S. that is being blocked from moving eastward.

Since moisture is limited, skies should be mostly sunny with a few high cirrus clouds possible this evening. Highs will top out in the mid 80s. Moisture increases overnight as winds turn to the southeast, and expect morning lows tomorrow be in the lower 60s for a change.

Rain chances will increase substantially tomorrow as the trough that moved onshore over the weekend approaches our area. The trough will be weakening and lifting northward, but there should be enough energy for a good chance of rain and thunderstorms. There is a chance of a severe storm or two with moderate wind shear and instability present tomorrow, but the risk of a big severe weather outbreak doesn't seem likely at this point.