(Radio Iowa) – An Iowa State University study finds immigrant entrepreneurs are less likely to choose Iowa as their place of business. I-S-U economics professor John Winters says one main reason Iowa is being avoided is the state’s cold climate, especially during the winter. “Immigrant entrepreneurs are certainly an important part of the U.S. economy and the entrepreneur ecosystem,” Winters says, “and they’re not equally dispersed across the U.S. and to be quite honest, parts the Midwest, Iowa may never have the level of immigrant entrepreneurship that California has.”

Winter says it’s harder for immigrants to imagine running a successful business long-term in a state with such cold weather. He adds, that doesn’t mean Iowa should disregard immigrants who want to open their own businesses. “But it does mean that we have to be especially aware that outsiders are not just going to flock to Iowa,” Winters says, “that maybe we need to think about some of these challenges, and say, ‘Okay, how can we make the state more attractive to people?’”

Winters says Iowa -can- lure in those potential business owners by offering more incentives like expanding outreach and training programs to reach more immigrants in the state.

(byKassidy Arena, Iowa Public Radio)

Today: Sunny, with a high near 24. Wind chill values as low as -5. North northwest wind 8 to 13 mph becoming west southwest in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph.
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a steady temperature around 16. Wind chill values as low as 5. Southwest wind 6 to 10 mph becoming north northwest after midnight.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 26. Wind chill values as low as zero. North wind 5 to 7 mph becoming calm in the afternoon.
Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 12. Wind chill values as low as zero. Light southeast wind becoming south 6 to 11 mph in the evening.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 46. Breezy, with a south southwest wind 11 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 47.

SKYSCAN FORECAST FOR SATURDAY, JANUARY 8, 2022

TODAY: Partly cloudy skies. Winds-S 15-25 High near 40

TONIGHT: Mostly cloudy skies. Winds becoming NW 15-25 Low 12

SUNDAY: Partly cloudy skies. Winds- NW 15-25 High 28

MONDAY: Partly cloudy skies. High 28

TUESDAY: Partly cloudy skies. High near 40

Yesterday’s high was 20 and the low was 3. This day last year we had a high of 33 and a low of 22. The all-time record high for January 8th was 65 in 2003 and the record low was -19 in 1970. Sunset tonight is 5:07 p.m. and Sunrise tomorrow is 7:46 a.m.

(Radio Iowa) – There’s some relief coming from the cold weather as wind chill advisories have expired. National Weather Service Meteorologist, Mike Fowle, says the cold winds are moving out. “The coldest air of the season that impacted us is gradually going move off to the east — and we are expecting a little milder temperatures for this upcoming weekend,” he says. “I guess I would categorize it more as a roller coaster. We are going to warm up a little bit tomorrow (Saturday) to near seasonal normals or seasonal averages with temperatures in the 20s and 30s. And then we will tumble a little bit late into next week. Not as cold as we were — but back below seasonal averages — with highs falling back to the single digits up into the teens,” Fowle says.

The recent run of single-digit temperatures with subzero windchills seemed a lot worse after a December that saw some days in the 60s and 70s — but Fowle says the cold was normal. “We haven’t really approached any record-type low temperatures. So although it’s been cold we weren’t seeing any sort of record cold. This is more typically January in Iowa kind of conditions,” he says. Fowle says we aren’t likely to see much new snow in the coming days.

“Right now we are not seeing any real large weather systems on the horizon — at least for the next week to ten days,” according to Fowle. “There is a change for some weaker systems to move across the state — including even tomorrow. We are watching the potential for a little bit of freezing drizzle possibly developing — and as we know — sometimes these real minor events can cause headaches on the roadways.”

Fowle says the best thing to do is to keep an eye on the updated forecast when you head out and be prepared for any type of winter conditions.

Today: Partly cloudy to cloudy & breezy. High near 20. S/SE @ 15-25 mph (Wind chill as low as -15)

Tonight: P/Cldy. Low 15. S @ 10-15.

Tomorrow: P/Cldy. High near 40. S @ 10-20.

Sunday: Mostly cloudy. High 22.

Monday: P/Cldy. High 26.

Thursday’s High in Atlantic was 7 Our Low was -5. Last year on this date the High in Atlantic was 33 and the Low was 20. The Record High on this date was 63 in 2003. The Record Low was -27 in 1912.

Today: **Wind Chill Advisory until Noon** Partly cloudy & breezy. High 10. NW @ 10-20 mph (Wind chill as low as -25)

Tonight: Fair to P/Cldy. Low -4. N winds becoming SE @ 5.

Tomorrow: Mostly cloudy. High 21. S @ 15-25.

Saturday: P/Cldy. High around 40.

Sunday: Mo. Cldy. High 22.

Wednesday’s High in Atlantic was 14. Our Low this morning was -3. Last year on this date the High in Atlantic was 40 and the Low was 29. The Record High on this date was 56 in 1933. The Record Low was -24 in 1910.

Today: Partly cloudy & windy. High 14. NW @ 20-35 mph, diminishing this afternoon. WIND ADVISORY UNTIL NOON

Tonight: P/Cldy. Low -2. NW @ 10. WIND CHILL ADVISORY FROM MIDNIGHT TO NOON THURSDAY

Tomorrow: P/Cldy. High 10. NW @ 10-15.

Friday: Mostly cloudy w/flurries. High 22.

Saturday: P/Cldy. High near 40.

Tuesday’s High in Atlantic was 39. Our Low this morning was 4. Last year on this date the High in Atlantic was 42 and the Low was 11. The Record High on this date was 62 in 2012. The Record Low was -26 in 2010.

(Radio Iowa) – The 2021 weather year wasn’t one that will end up at the top of the list when it comes to extremes — but there were a few numbers and events to note. State Climatologist, Justin Glisan, says precipitation was two or three inches below normal overall. “Basically right in the middle of distribution — so we would say top 50 driest years on record — but again, right in the middle of the behavior. So, not extremely dry,” Glisan says. He says 2021 came after a very dry 2020. Some areas caught up by the end of the year — while others continue to see rainfall deficits. “In the driest parts of the state anywhere from eight to twelve inches, now these are smaller pockets than where we were last year. Now we do see some pockets in the state — western Iowa and southern Iowa — that are near normal to above-average precipitation,” Glisan says.

One thing 2021 didn’t have was a lot of severe weather — but there were major tornado outbreaks in July and with the serial derecho in December. “The last of which — the December 15th event — is the largest tornado outbreak that we’ve seen on a single day, with preliminarily 43 tornadoes, which broke the record set on August 31st of 2014 of 35 tornadoes,” according to Glisan. “Having a tornado outbreak of that scale is an extreme event. But having that happen in December is unheard of.” Glisan says the December derecho is an event that will be studied for some time. He says the lack of severe weather tied in with the dry conditions. “It’s a reflection of the subsoil and topsoil conditions. Low-level moisture — if it’s not available — you can’t pop up thunderstorms. If you don’t have thunderstorms you can’t have severe weather, no rainfall, drought. So, it does go hand in hand,” Glisan says.

He says the temperature situation was a little unusual as well. “Temperature wise we were almost two degrees above average. It’s hard to get above or below a degree in terms of annual temperature — so that’s another significant thing we saw,” Glisan says. December alone saw temperatures average 32 degrees — which is six-and-a-half degrees above normal. Temperatures rose into the 70s on some days in December.