(Radio Iowa) – A few days ago, forecasters were warning of the possibility of snow on or around Thanksgiving, but now that we’re closer to the holiday, the foul weather is being removed from the list of likely options. Meteorologist Allan Curtis, at the National Weather Service, says if you’ll be on the road to visit family and friends for Thursday’s big meal, the roads should be dry. “At least for Iowa itself, we’ll say the driving weather is going to be pretty good for the holidays, Wednesday through Friday timeframe,” Curtis says. “There is some still some snow within the region but primarily to our west and maybe even off to our southwest, so think of it as Nebraska, Kansas areas.”

It’s predicted Thanksgiving Day should be mostly sunny in Iowa with highs in the 40s and lows in the 20s. Curtis says it’s expected to cool off this week, but that’s par for the season. “No more 60s or even upper 50s, at least for the coming few days, but all that being said, for entering mid to late November, it really isn’t too bad. It’s about average,” Curtis says. “We’re looking at highs in the mid to upper 40s for most of those travel days, Wednesday might be on the warm side in the 50s, and then after Thanksgiving, we drop down into the 30s for highs.” Many parts of Iowa got rain overnight Monday into Tuesday morning. It’s the first precipitation we’ve had since before Halloween.

“From [Monday] morning through the beginning of the month, we’ve really had zero rain across a lot of the state, so even if it’s light, it’s still the first rain we’ve seen this month,” Curtis says. “I don’t think there’s going to be too many people complaining, although I think many wish we could get a little bit more.” Keep up with the forecast on the kjan.com Weather page, or via the National Weather Service, at weather.gov.

Today: A slight chance of rain before 7am, then a chance of sprinkles. Cloudy & windy, with gradual clearing, with a high near 43. N/NW @ 15-30 mph.

Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 22. N/NW @ 5-15 w/gusts to near 20 mph.

Tomorrow: Sunny, with a high near 51. S/SW @ 5-15 w/gusts to around 25 mph.

Tom. Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 27. S/SW winds @ 10-20 shifting to the North after midnight.

Thanksgiving Day🦃: Mostly sunny, with a high near 43.

Thursday Night: Mostly cloudy & blustery, with a low around 21.

Friday: Mostly cloudy & breezy, with a high near 33.

Saturday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 35.

Monday’s High in Atlantic was 46. Our Low was 40. We received .1″ of rain from 7-a.m. Monday thru 7-a.m. today (24-hrs). This day last year the high was 52 and the low 14. The record high for Nov. 21st in Atlantic was 71 in 1990. The record low was -14 in 1937. Sunrise is at 7:15 am and sunset is at 4:56 pm.

Atlantic (KJAN), .03”

Audubon, .01″

Council Bluffs, .30″

Elk Horn, .05″

Harlan, .34″

Missouri Valley, .08″

Mondamin, .08″

New Market, .08″

Persia, .22″

Portsmouth, .24″

Schleswig,  .04″

Shenandoah, .25″

Today: Cloudy w/a 40% chance of rain. High near 47. East wind 10 to 20 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch are expected.
Tonight: Mostly cloudy w/a 20% chance of rain before 8pm. Low around 36. N/NE wind 10-20 mph.
Tomorrow: Mostly cloudy & breezy through mid morning, then gradual clearing. High near 45. N @ 15-30 mph.
Tom. Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 22. N/NW @ 5-15 becoming W/SW after midnight & gusting to near 20 mph.
Wednesday: Sunny & breezy, with a high near 55.
Thanksgiving Day: Mostly sunny & breezy, with a high near 42.
Friday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 35.

Sunday’s High in Atlantic was 59. Our Low was 30. This day last year the high was 52 and the low 19. The record high for Nov. 20th in Atlantic was 75 in 1933. The record low was -1 in 1937 & 1985. Sunrise is at 7:14 am and sunset is at 4:57 pm. Rainfall overnight (thru 4:50-a.m. today) was just .02.”

Today: Mostly cloudy w/a 30% chance of rain, mainly after 5pm. High near 56. SW winds at 5-15 mph w/gusts to near 20.

Tonight: A 60% chance of rain overnight. Low around 41. E/SE winds around 10 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch are expected.

Tomorrow: Cloudy w/a 60% chance of rain through about Noon. High near 45. E winds @ 10-20 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch are expected.

Tom. Night: Mostly cloudy w/a slight chance of rain before midnight. Low around 33.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny, & windy with a high near 44. N/NW winds at 10-20 mph gusting to around 30.

Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 48.

Saturday’s High in Atlantic was 65. Our Low was 21. This day last year the high was 31 and the low 12. The record high for Nov. 19th in Atlantic was 73 in 1930. The record low was -1 in 1914. Sunrise is at 7:13 am and sunset is at 4:57 pm.

Today: Sunny, with a high near 61. West wind 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 34.

Sunday:Partly cloudy to cloudy with a chance of rain in the afternoon. High near 56. SE wind 5-to 10-mph w/gusts to near 20 mph.

Sunday Night: Cloudy, w/a 60% chance of rain after midnight. Low around 39. E/SE winds 10-20 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch are expected.

Monday: A 60% chance of rain through about Noon. Otherwise cloudy. High near 45. E/NE @ 10-20 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch are expected.

Monday Night: Mostly cloudy w/a slight chance of rain before midnight. Low around 32.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny & windy, with a high near 47.

Friday’s High in Atlantic was 52. Our Low was 21. This day last year the high was 26 and the low 11. The record high for Nov. 18th in Atlantic was 72 in 1999. The record low was 0 in 1891.

Today: Sunny, with a high near 49. North northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light and variable.

Tonight: Clear, with a low around 28. South southwest wind 5 to 10 mph.

Tomorrow: Sunny, with a high near 60. West wind 5 to 10 mph.

Tom. Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 35.

Sunday: Mostly cloudy w/a 30% chance of rain in the afternoon. High near 55. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.

Sunday Night: Cloudy &breezy,w/a 50% chance of rain. Low around 38.

Monday: Cloudy & breezy w/a 60% chance of rain through mid-day. High near 45.

Thursday’s High in Atlantic was 67. Our Low this morning was 23. This day last year the high was 34 and the low 11. The record high for Nov. 17th in Atlantic was 73 in 1941. The record low was -2 in 1959. Sunrise is at 7:11 am and sunset is at 4:59 pm.

(Radio Iowa) – Even though temperatures are in the 50s and 60s today (Thursday), there will be a time down the road, perhaps soon, when snow arrives in Iowa — and lots of it. Meteorologist Chad Hahn, at the National Weather Service in Johnston, says they’re launching new guidelines which stipulate how winter storm watches and warnings are issued, based on the amount of snow that’s predicted to fall.

For Iowa and all points north, Hahn says it’ll be six inches or more of snow, but as you go south, that criteria decreases to account for climatological differences. Hahn says the changes won’t be all that noticeable for the winter storm forecasts that are being issued in Iowa.

The old system used time restraints, so much snow over so many hours, and he says now, it’ll simply zero in on a winter event.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – The latest Iowa Drought Monitor was released this (Thursday) morning, showing both the Severe and Extreme Drought areas have expanded slightly. Unfortunately, there isn’t much help expected anytime soon. There are some light rain chances early next week, but the 8-to 14-day outlook is leaning toward below normal precipitation. (Click on the graphics to enlarge)

Area Counties: Sac-Crawford-Carroll-Audubon-Guthrie-Dallas-Cass-Adair-Madison-Adams-Union
1122 AM CST Thu Nov 16 2023

…Period of Gusty Winds Causing Elevated Fire Weather Conditions Today…

What…Breezy winds out of the southwest from 20 to 25 mph with gusts over 30 mph.

elevated fire weather (counties in flesh color); Wind Advisory for counties in brown.

When…Now until 3 pm

Impacts…Winds may cause fires to behave sporadically at times. Unsecured outdoor objects may be blown around and smaller tree branches may break.

Preparedness and Precautionary Actions…Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high profile vehicle.