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.

Today: Partly cloudy & windy. High 41. SW @ 10-20 mph.

Tonight: P/cldy to Cldy w/flurries late. Low 7. NW @ 20-40. **Wind Advisory in effect from 6-p.m. today thru 6-a.m. Wed.**

Tomorrow: P/Cldy. High 12. NW @ 20-40 diminishing late.

Thursday: P/Cldy w/flurries. High 10

Friday: Mo. cldy w/flurries. High 23.

Monday’s High in Atlantic was 35. Our Low was 7. Last year on this date the High in Atlantic was 40 and the Low was 9. The Record High on this date was 59 in 1939. The Record Low was -29 in 2010.

(Radio Iowa) – The outbreak of dozens of tornadoes in Iowa and across the region last month was very unusual and one weather expert says it may be a sign of what lies ahead. Doug Kluck, climate services director for the Central Region of the National Weather Service, says massive and rare derecho storms like the one on December 15th may be connected to a changing climate. “The likelihood of tornadoes in December and January and other, if you will, off-season severe weather is and will be enhanced in the future,” Kluck says.

The regional National Weather Service office in Kansas City is seeing other changes to the traditional storm track. Kluck says, “The center of tornado alley moving further east, out of the Great Plains and such and then, of course, simply the observation of severe weather in other parts of the year can lead one to that conclusion, to some degree.”

Parts of Iowa saw record high temperatures in the 70s prior to the storm’s arrival on December 15th and the warm air collided with a cold front, bringing exceptionally strong straight line winds and multiple damaging tornadoes. Minnesota recorded its first-ever December tornadoes that same day.

“Those conditions are very hard to put together in December and January, certainly in Minnesota but even in Iowa and Nebraska,” Kluck says. “The further south you go, the easier it is to put the combination of those variables together to create severe weather, but certainly not this far north.”

The derecho was Iowa’s second in two years and it spun off 43 tornadoes in the state, a single-day record, along with 18 twisters in Nebraska and six in Minnesota.

Today: Mostly sunny. High 36. SW @ 10-20 mph.

Tonight: Fair to partly cloudy. Low 25. S @ 10.

Tomorrow: P/Cldy. High 42. SW @ 10-20.

Wednesday: P/Cldy, windy & colder. High 14.

Thursday: P/Cldy. High 12.

Sunday’s High in Atlantic was 9. Our Low was -11. Last year on this date the High in Atlantic was 35 and the Low was 10. The Record High on this date was 52 in 1933. The Record Low was -30 in 2010.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The last month of 2021 in Atlantic 12 degrees warmer and slightly less than one-inch drier than normal. The Average High for December was 45. The Average Low was 20. We received just .16″ of precipitation during the entire month, including .2″ melted snow on the 10th. December 15th was the warmest day, with a record-breaking 72 degrees, followed by December 2nd, when we set a record High of 65.

There were no record Low temps set for the month. The coldest morning was on Dec. 31, when we bottomed-out the mercury at 4 degrees. During the month of January in Atlantic, we typically see a little over eight-tenths of an inch of precipitation (Including melted snowfall). The Average High is 29, and the average Low is 9 Degrees.

We’ll let you know how the data compared to those stats, when we compile the data next month.