Pittsburgh looking at a drier and milder day ahead of freezing rain on Sunday
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - High pressure has settled across the Northeast US reinforcing the cold air mass that settled in toward the back half of the week.
WEATHER LINKS:
Current Conditions | School Closings & Delays | Submit Your Weather Photos
As this high starts to slowly move east, winds will gradually shift from northeast to east and southeast today resulting in a slow, but steady warm-up compared to the last few days. Highs will reach the mid-30s to low 40s for locations west of the Laurel Highlands and Ridges today while the higher terrain stays in the low to mid-30s.
Skies will be mostly sunny this morning and gradually turn partly to mostly cloudy by late afternoon and this evening as the next system currently over the Midwest moves east towards Western PA and northern WV.
Overnight into the predawn hours of Sunday morning, skies will be mostly cloudy to overcast which will prevent temperatures from dropping as much, but still expect most locations to drop a few degrees below freezing.
The next wave of precipitation associated with a wave of low pressure over the Midwest States will move in around sunrise and last through late afternoon. For locations in Pittsburgh and points south and west, this will predominantly be a rain event.
There may be a brief period of freezing rain and or sleet at the onset of the precipitation, but a combination of warmer air moving in aloft and flow descending the higher terrain of the Laurel Highlands and Ridges should result in temperatures warming above freezing fairly quickly by mid-morning.
Where the low-level cold air lingers longer, this is where more problems will arise with ice accumulation. Areas along the I-80 corridor and in the Laurel Highlands and Ridges will have the greatest potential for a more prolonged period of freezing rain and sleet.
This is where the National Weather Service has posted a Winter Weather Advisory effective from 7 a.m. through 7 p.m. Sunday. Up to 1/10" of ice and 1" of snow and sleet accumulations are possible in the Winter Weather Advisory area. Travel could become dicey as well, so motorists should use caution.
By late Sunday evening and overnight into Monday, most of our area will be well above freezing with lingering areas of rain showers and some drizzle for Monday morning.
Warmer air will continue to flow in from the southwest ahead of another disturbance and its associated cold front. This will result in highs reaching the mid-40s to low 50s by late Monday evening. Rain will spread in with the next front and last into the early overnight hours of Tuesday.
Tuesday's high will occur early in the morning with steady and falling temperatures through the rest of the day along with clearing skies.
Tuesday night into Wednesday morning will be dry, but clouds will increase through the day Wednesday with another round of rain showers by afternoon and evening. Some snow is possible to wrap up this event by Thursday morning.
Temperatures will largely be near to below average toward the end of next week.
Stay up to date with the KDKA Mobile App – which you can download here!
