Today: Wednesday will start with a weak dome of high pressure moving off to the east trying to keep that pesky stationary front to the south from moving north. Despite a few early peaks of sunshine, Wednesday will be mostly cloudy because of the potent weather system to the south. Temperatures will rise through the 30s in the morning with a calm eastern wind. By the afternoon, temperatures should reach the low 40s for a high with winds turning to the southeast and increasing to 5-10 mph sustained. By the evening winds will decrease to around 5 mph sustained and begin to turn to the northeast.
Overnight: Overnight, skies will remain cloudy, as temperatures fall and bottom out in the mid 30s with winds remaining northeastern and sustained around 5-10 mph. Also, the high-pressure system that kept the stationary front to the south of Milwaukee during the day will move well off to the east, allowing for isolated showers from the stationary front to move north by midnight. Precipitation chances stay near 50% after midnight.
Tomorrow: Thursday will start on a rainy and overcast note. Off and on showers will continue throughout the morning courtesy of the stationary front stationed to the south. New precipitation amounts will range from one-tenth to a quarter inch. Furthermore, this front will evolve and act more like a warm front as it continues its journey northward Thursday. As it approaches, it will allow temperatures to rise through the 30s and eventually end up in the low 40s for a high by mid-day. Winds of 5-10 mph from the northeast will continue most of the day with overcast conditions. By the late evening and into the overnight hours, winds will begin to turn to the southeast with sustained speeds around 5-10 mph. This is because of the approaching warm front which will cause all of southern Wisconsin to enjoy a very mild weekend.
Extended: A huge warm up is on the way for southern Wisconsin this coming weekend. High temperatures during this period will range from the high 50s to near 60 Friday, while Saturday and Sunday will stay in the upper 50s. This temperature increase will also lead to more of an active weather pattern for the Milwaukee area. This will be made possible because of a warm front from the south that will move northward over Milwaukee Friday. Friday will be the most active weather day out of the whole week for a couple of reasons. First, southeast winds around 10 mph sustained in the morning will turn to the south by the afternoon. This will allow for some warm and humid air, with dew points around 60, to build into the Milwaukee area Friday afternoon. Second, this air mass will act as fuel for a 80% chance of rain and thunderstorms that will move through Friday afternoon through the overnight. I would like to note that some of these thunderstorms will be on the strong to severe side. The Storm Prediction Center has issued a slight risk of 15% for severe weather after midday Friday over the Milwaukee area. This means that scattered severe storms are expected over the area with the main threats being damaging winds in excess of 60 mph and maybe some quarter size hail. By the evening and into the overnight hours, isolated thunderstorms and showers will continue as winds will increase to around 20-25 mph and turn to the southwest. The turning happens because of another approaching low pressure from the southwest with a cold front attached to the southern end. This will move northeast, bisecting Wisconsin Friday night into early Saturday morning.
Saturday will be another overcast day. Besides a 20% chance of leftover morning showers, Saturday should be an OK day. Winds out of the west around 20 mph in morning will turn to the northwest in the late afternoon. Finally, winds will turn back to the west and calm to around 5-10 mph sustained. On Saturday night, a high-pressure system will start its approach form the southwest which will turn Milwaukee’s winds back to the southwest by Sunday morning.
Sunday will be much like your Saturday except with no rain chances courtesy of a high-pressure system beginning to take hold over Wisconsin weather from the southwest. Over the course of the day, the high-pressure system will keep to the south of the area and move east. Skies will remain mostly cloudy except for some early morning sun with 15-20 mph southwest winds which will last through the late afternoon. Winds will finally ease in the evening to around 5-10 mph sustained. During the overnight hours, winds will turn again to the south but remain between 5-10 mph as the high-pressure system starts to move farther off the east. Finally, daylight savings time is Sunday, so don’t forget to push your clocks an hour ahead Sunday night.
