First Snow Of 2013!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this cold Sunday! We've had a few systems move in one right after another. That put us in position for a very light accumulation of snow both times with the last one being slightly more in the way of accumulations. With that being said we have another system set to move in New Years Eve into New Years Day.

The models have a bad handle on this system. They say temperatures will be too warm and keep the whole state in the rain side. Here's an example of that coming from the GFS Precip model:

This is hour 39 of the forecast coming from the GFS 12Z. You can see how far northward this model keeps the snow. I just don't see this happening. Now if this model brought the snow line about 150 miles further south I could see that, but this is way too far north.

The NAM model even shows the same thing. I think they're basing this off temperatures and thats that. Temperatures down here will be a tough above freezing and thats going to set up shop for a brief start as rain this quickly change to a mix then to snow. I do think accumulations is very likely from this and central Kentucky has a better chance than us. I'm not saying that we're not getting anything but I am also saying this: we're still too far out to touch up on snowfall total numbers from this thing. ALOT can change and ALOT WILL change before this thing gets in here.

Depending on the track of this system this could affect some school systems from starting back on regular schedule. We could be looking at widespead school closings for much of central and eastern Kentucky. That's something I'll be watching as we get closer into the day tomorrow and New Years day.

Like always you can watch for any updates on my Facebook and on Twitter. If you want better updates it's best to check out my facebook as I have more room to go into detail. Have a great evening everyone and a Happy New Year! Take care and stay safe! :)

Winter Storm Update:

Hello everyone and Merry Christmas Eve to all of you out there, I bring you this update for our next winter storm that looks to affect our area starting Christmas night into the following day on Wednesday. We'll start out as rain Christmas night and by Wednesday afternoon/evening we'll have a very quick change over to snow and some light accumulations are expected.

Let's get to it shall we? ;) Now with the above being said I do have to tell you the mean effects from this storm will be felt in the western parts of the state. The GFS and NAM models are trending a bit further east with the storm and with that in mind increases the threats ever so slightly further into central and eastern Kentucky. That is the reason why when you'll look at my First call for snowfall map below, you will think "This guy is crazy, other weather people isn't even saying this much.":

Now, in the 4-8 inch area of western Kentucky there could be some locally higher amounts of 10 inches in some areas. The further east you go will be the more rain that you will see, thus keeping snowfall totals in check. The 1-2 inch area is still un-certain due to the fact that the track of the low is still uncertain. If this storm moves further east (as I expect it to do so) We could be in for a bit more than that shown above.

There is a WINTER STORM WATCH out for far western Kentucky. Here's the map:

Since I do expect the low pressure to move further east, I also expect to see these Winter Strom watches to be extended at least a few counties further to the east.

I will be updating via Facebook and Twitter as much as possible on this storm. Have a great Christmas Eve and Christmas and Merry Christmas to all of you. Take care! :)

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! We have a WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY in effect for southern and southeastern and of course eastern Kentucky starting at 10pm tonight until 3pm tomorrow.

Here's the scoop: The potent cold fron is passing over us as you read this and this will bring very cold temperatures to the area and gusty damaging winds up to 45mph. As this system moves to the Great Lakes it will create Lake Effect Snows coming from Lake Michigan. How? Well Lake Michigan is completely unfrozen. It's warm actually and with this cold air moving over a warm, large body of water and that will create snow. This snow will then reach as far south as Kentucky and could put down a light accumulation for much of central and Eastern Kentucky. (Hints the Winter Weather Advisory.)

I still expect around one inch here but local areas could see as much as 3 inches as we could get in on the more persistant bands of snow. What I mean by that is basically the longer and the heavier it snow, DUH! The more snow you'll see ;) It's a no brainer right? :P

Now with these gusty winds and the snow falling that will make for rough driving conditions and at times snow could come down so hard we could see white out conditions too. Blowing snow is a concern not only for the snow coming down but these winds could be so strong that it can pick up snow off the ground and blow it around as well.

I will have several more updates as needed through out the evening and probably overnight as well. I'm the weather dude here and I'm in it for the long haul and If you have any questions don't be afraid to tweet or send them to me on facebook! It's what I'm here for! Have a great Thursday everyone, take care and be safe! :)

White Christmas Odds Update!

Hello everyone and good Tuesday to you! Welcome back to the blog for this White Christmas Odds Update post! As you know we had that small severe weather threat yesterday and all of that has now gone by the wayside and we're a mear 15 degrees cooler from this time yesterday.

Now to the good stuff. May of you have been blowing up my inbox on Facebook with questions on our snow chances for the winter along with questions like "Will we have a white Christmas this year?" Now I know we'rea week away and I'm no stranger to making predictions from a week or more out ;). Last week I had our chances for a White Christmas at 61% and it was only looking to go up from there.

To answer the first question of When will we see the snow? Well we have a potent system and cold front moving in here Thursday and we're likely to go from 50 degree temperatures with thunder and rain to 20s and 30s with snow in just a few hours time. Thursday night into Friday morning a good light accumulation of snow is a good bet with snow squalls and shower soming down along with 30-40 mph winds making the temperatures feel like at or near 10 degrees.

Now to the second question, Will we have a White Christmas? Well I know the past few weeks have been looking great and they still are but the models are agruing on the timing of these storm systems. They now say late Christmas day we could see snow flying. Because of the fact that we're still a week out I'm keeping our white Christmas odds above 50/50 right at 57%. Yeah thats down a bit but thats because the chance in the forecast. Here's what one model points at for that Christmas day forecast:

That look right there would probably bring a brief rain then change to mix and eventually snow as we work into Christmas Day evening.

As always I'll keep an eye on the situation and give you plenty of updates as we get closer. No matter if we have that White Chirstmas or not I hope you all have a Merry Christmas! :) Have a great Tuesday everyone and take care! :)

Wet Weekend, Big Storm To Follow

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this Thursday evening. As I informed you on my facebook page I will not be online at all for much of the day tomorrow as I have yet another doctor appointment with a surgeon up at UK Hospital. Therefore I give you this full update tonight.

Tomorrow, temperatures will start off in the upper 20s and as we go through the day temperatures will warm to an over-all above average state of right around 54 degrees.Saturday into Saturday night our rain chances increase as we'll have a 50% chance with high temperatures topping out around 58 degrees. Sunday we'll have a high temperature of 60 degrees with a 50% chance of rain. Monday is when things will get interesting as we should know the track of this next big system, we'll have a high in the mid 50s with a 40% chance of rain.

I know over the past few days I've been posting pictures of the GFS model and what it was thinking. Well now it's changed so much (as expected) I'm not even going to post it anymore untill it gets its act together. The Canadian and European models look good for a set up for a big storm to our southeast bringing rain to snow on Tuesday into Wednesday.

I do want to show you all what Accuweather has said and this will tell you alot that I'm not the only guy all over this storm:

Not too sure on if this will be a full blown winter storm, a change from rain to snow or what as of now, but things should get lined up and we should know much more in the coming days. Sunday is the target day for me and I hope to know where this thing is going to go.

Right around Monday or Tuesday I should have another update on our White Christmas odds. Have a great Thursday evening everyone and take care! :)

White Christmas Thoughts

Hello and good Tuesday to everyone out there! We had that potent cold front move through yesterday and now today we're seeing temperatures struggle to the upper 30s for highs! We'll struggle through the rest of the week as well as tomorrow high temperatures will hold in the upper 30s to low 40s. Thursday highs in the upper 40s and Friday highs in the low 50s in which all of those day will feature morning time lows in the 20s.

Enough with the next few days, I know as well as you do that the title of this post 'White Christmas Thoughts' is what pulled you into reading this ;). I updated my faebook status telling you that last week we had a 52% chance for a White Christmas and today I'm here to say we've now got a 61% chance. Thats a big jump and if it wasn't for the strong readings the models are giving me it wouldn't be this high.

I'm seeing the possibility of a winter storm to creep through the Ohio Valley next week around mid week, and I'm saying this because it cannot go north due to the fact that we have that blocking high pressure in eastern Canada and in Greenland. If you need a refresher of what a blocking high pressure is refer back to the winter weather forecast posts.  That blocking acts like a shield. It doesn't let anything in and actually almost reflects things in a way. Anyways with it being in place that forces any system to stay south of the blocking high pressure allowing the cold air to also be in place therefore becoming a winter storm for our area.

The models also talk about a few systems moving in during and around Christmas week. If we can get lucky we may be able to see one of them move in here and maybe bring us that White Christmas that everyone wants.

On a different note the guys at liveweatherblogs.com have updated their winter weather outlook yesterday and take a look at what they're calling for around our area:

Yeah, you're reading that map right. That says 20-30% above average snowfall for this winter for our area. Hopefully that will keep the moral up of several people whom have complained of not seeing any snow so far this December. Again, chill out. It'll happen soon enough ;).

Have a great Tuesday everyone and take care! :)

Winter Creepin' Into The Picture

Hello everyone and as always welcome back to the blog! Like I promised on my Facebook I am here to give you all an update on the state of our winter season and any snow odds in our near future. First off I want to start with today's weather. Today we'll see rounds of rain and storms off and on through out the day as a previously stalled out front that was to our south works northward across the Ohio Valley and a wave of low pressure works up along that front.

Tomorrow we get yet another system that works in here and could bring up to an additional 2 inches of rain in some spots! Temperatures will come crashing down quick, fast, and in a hurry behind that potent cold front. A 20-30 degree drop in temperatures can and probably will be noted at some point from the morning hours through the evening tomorrow. Now with that being said, there is some snow chances with it. Not much but hey it's something.

Monday night into Tuesday morning there is a small chance of having some accumulating snows in our area but just a dusting at the most if that, but there is a good chance we an see at least some snowfalkes fly! Take a look at my first call for snowfall map!

Yeah I know, it's not much of anything but don't give up on witner yet! Please! The state of our winter is still in good shape as the last half of December is looking good for a few chances for some big time storms to roll across our reigon.

I'm actually seeing models pointing at the chance for a big Winter Weather maker to roll across the Ohio Valley between December 16th-20th. Yeah I know thats just about a week away and that is something to watch in the coming days! ;)

This is the possibility of seeing any kind of precip in our area for the 16th. This shows a 10% chance around here and with us being about a week out you have to consider this is actually decent odds to be this far out.

More on all of this stuff in the coming days! Have a great Sunday and take care everyone! :)

Gorgeous Start To December, Winter To Take Over

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this gorgeous December day. If you follow my posts on Facebook, you will know that I issued a statement to all those folks whom are jumping on the "It's 70 degrees in December, let's call off Winter" bandwagon. 60 and 70 degree temperatures are not uncommon here in Kentucky in December and a matter of fact, two thirds of all Decembers in record featured temperatures in the 60s at least at some point in December here.

I wanted to tell you please get out and enjoy this 70 degree temperature day because this will be the last nice day for a while. Tomorrow a cold fron will move in bringing locally heavy rains and cooler temperatures. Most location will remain in the mid 40s for highs. This weekend looks pretty wild here. Friday a system moves in bringing yet more rain in which we need because we're getting pretty dry here once again.

Late in the weekend we'll get another system moving in here and it looks to be the bigger of the two. This one looks to start off as rain and on the back side a wintry aspect is showing up. Some of you may have heard of the 7th-14th is the days I've been watching out for. That still looks to hold true as of now for it being the first real shot at winter weather around here.

I have a big announcement to make and it is I have something I'm doing just for Christmas. Everyone wants a white Christmas right? Well once a week untill a week before Christmas I will update you all on the chances of a white Christmas then in the last 7 days I will update you everyday. Since we're on the topic of a White Christmas take a look at what the CFS model is calling for in the way of snow here on Christmas:

With that being said above, we could be looking at a few inches of snow on the ground for Christmas morning. That should get you're Christmas spirit really going! Right now I give our chances of a white Christmas right around 53%. Why so low? Well first off we're still at least 3 weeks away and thats ALOT of time for things to change and it will change.

Have a great day everyone and take care! :)

Southern Plains Storm, Kentucky Snow Maker?

Hello everyone and good Sunday to you! If you have been watching my Facebook feed you would know we have a storm system coming into the state on Monday evening. This system looks to bring a little bit of both rain and snow our way ;)

Now let's go in depth with this system. This is a storm that will track across Tennessee allowing cold air to get us from the north. That cold air will allow for a change-over to snow for most of the state of Kentucky. Now with that being said, there will be a transition line. That transition line of rain and snow will set up shop somewhere in the northern Kentucky area Monday night then move southward allowing for the counties north of our location to see the best shot at some slushy accumulations of snow.

This sytem isn't going to produce anything big in the way of snow but we could certainly see the first accumulating snows of the season for many locations. Take a look at this map for the best shot at accumulating snows:

This area in the purple currently looks like the best chance for light accumulation of snow. Remember this do not mean we will see snow on the ground but we do have the best chance.

Now, here's a image of what the Canadian model is spitting out in the way of that transition line I was talking about earlier:

Do you see that yellow color between the rain and snow? Thats the transition line I was talking about above. Thats where any type of mixed precip can fall. Sleet, snow, rain, freezing rain, ect. This model shows that line moving further south and east and actually this model also shows the system moving further south then Tenessee. That means a better chance in the way of snow.

I will have several updates in my twitter feed and facebook feed as well in the next 24-48 hours about this storm. Have a great Sunday everyone and take care! :)

Winter Weather Forecast Part 2 Of 3

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog. I hope all of you liked the preliminary post of my Winter Weather Forecast. I'm now back and with a part two of the forecast. Like I said on my facebook account, I do not know at this time if I will post a part three to the Winter Weather Forecast. It really depends on how things go. I do want to add, although I may be pressed for time I will for sure be with you like always through out the winter updating you on social media sites.

Now to the good stuff. I am seeing a change in the El Nino. The factor for an El Nino to occur when I made the first post was definately there. Now I'm not seeing that factor stand out as much. There is a threat for it to back down into a neutral phase, although El Nino is expected to make a return to the weak phase and like I've said for months thats a good thing for cold and snow lovers. If El Nino does sldie into a neutral phase anyting can happen. That also increases our rise for a mild winter like last year. Like I've said for months, if you are a cold and snow lover you want the El Nino to come in a weak form. The waters off the western coast of South America is currently just ever so slightly about average. That is something I will continue to watch carefully.

The factors for El Nino is currently just under 0.5, now thats in the neutral category but when the factor goes above 0.5 then, it would be in the El Nino category. Anything under -0.5 is a La Nina. The NAO and AO is bigger factors than ever this year and if you need a refresher of what that is check out the Part 1 post of the Winter Weather Forecast. The NAO and the AO is hard to predict because of the fact that the parameters for those two only go out two weeks ahead of time.

Now here's a few maps I found that will help you out. Sorry no snowfall forecast maps or temperature forecast maps this time.

Here's the Snow cover map:

Why am I showing you a map of everyone else thats getting snow? It's simple, It shows the current snow pack in place and anyone that is familiar with winter weather will know that areas with a snow pack have more cold air and that also means places with that snow on the ground stay cooler.

This a great sign for cold and snow lovers because with a snow pack so low in Canada this early only means one thing. There's plenty of cold air that Canada will be sharing with us this winter! You can't have snow without the cold ;)

Here's  2 more maps, none of which are created by me but I am posting thme this go around due to the fact that I am in much agreement with the guys who did create these maps.I honestly couldn't be in a greement more with these folks. Words can't describe it. Anyways here is the temperature map for this winter:

This map just like mine, show normal temperatures for our neck of the woods with slightly above normal and above normal temperatures for most, if not the rest of the state.

 Still coninuing to stay on the "Above Normal Snowfall" bandwagon! ;) Near normal snowfall is expected to fall in most of central and western Kentucky. This has actually migrated a bit further to the west and I'm sure it would insure our chances of getting that above normal snowfall.

I wanted to add that WKYT Meteorologist Chris Bailey had released his full winter weather forecast just days ago Monday evening. Chris predicts the same thing as myself. We are both in agreement that we'll see a slightly cooler than average winter and a wetter than average winter. ;).

I hope all of you liked this post as well as my last one. Again not sure on a part three just as of yet but I think I may be able to muster out a part three maybe in December ;). I wanted to say that this would not be possible without all of you and you all are the reason why I do this. There is nobody that puts all of their free time to help you all out as much as I do. I love all of you and God bless! :)





Extended Thanksgiving Day Forecast!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this Tuesday evening! Today has been a great day and I think this good ol' weather dude could pinch out a few more for you. ;) Today we had a chance for a shower or two but that was mainly for the northern most Counties. A few clouds did get in the way of the sunshine but thats just alright with us!

I wanted to add a side note here and tell you that my Winter Weather Forecast Part 2 is coming up very very soon. Thursday morning at 12am is when it will be released. Anyways let's get to the almighty Extended Thanksgiving Day forecast shall we? Tomorrow on the Eve of the holiday, we'll see yet another nice day. Temperatures will make a return to the low 60s after a cool start to the day in the mid to upper 30s. We'll also see partly cloudy skies which I think some locations will see more in the way of sun than the others.

Thanksgiving Day Thursday, high temperatures will be closer to 65 degrees here in the south. Not much in the way of cloud cover can be expected as I believe we'll say mostly on the sunny side ;). Friday is when things looks to change quick, fast and in a hurry! The day will start out nice on Friday but that potent cold front will soon move through during the mid-day hours. That front will bring a 50% chance of rain and very cold temperatures behind it. Temperatures will drop through out the rest of the day into the upper 30s to low 40s. On Saturday we may get a few snowflakes to move in here on the back side of everything.

Saturday looks to be a pretty day... but, it will also be cold. We'll see sunny skies with a high near 40 degrees. Sunday looks like a nice day as well but again cold, high temperatures near 49 degrees with sunny skies.

I also wanted to point out that Winter is threatening to arrive next week. This is something that is getting some SERIOUS ATTENTION to ALL METEOROLOGISTS in the state. None the less, I beieve, you will have SEVERAL SNOW CHANCES IN THE COMING WEEKS AHEAD.
Have a great Tuesday everyone and take care!

Beautiful Sunday, Major Cool Down Tomorrow

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! The lack of posts here lately has been with good cause. Schooling and all the good stuff has kept me very busy and I will post as much as I can. Anyways we have some important weather stuff to talk about!

The past few days have had headlines of the warm temperatures. Today was more of the same with many locations pushing 70 degrees and some locations actually topped the 70 degree mark. Overnight is when things get interesting. A line of showers and thunderstorms moves through the area. Nothing severe by any means but mainly some light rains. Temperatures tomorrow will start off on the warm side but don't get your hopes up for another warm day because it just isn't going to happen.

Tomorrow temperatures will be well into the 60s in the morning hours. At that time yes, this will be behind the cold front and temperatures will be on the down-hill slide. Within 2-3 hours time, these 60 degree temperatures will be long gone as we will be seeing upper 30s, and low to mid 40s in a matter of the few hours.

By time Tuesday morning gets here low temperatures will be back down into the COLD side. Low and mid 20s is what current models are trending at. These same models also show the chance at low in the UPPER TEENS in central Kentucky. High temperatures Tuesday will rebound into the mid 40s as for Wednesday much of the same can be expected for highs.

As of right now from Thursday though Sunday things looks to be good. Low temperatures of those mornings in the low 30s with rebounding highs in the mid to upper 50s.

Have a great Sunday afternoon everyone and take care! :)

Hurricane Sandy For The Northeast, Winter Storm For Kentucky?

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! I just wanted to give you a heads up on Sandy. Why? Because it's a storms that has NEVER HAPPENED before! No hurricane has made landfall and have snow on the back side of it! As you know the snow that will be on the back side will be wet and heavy due to the fact that this is tropical moisture being pulled up and that tropical moisture is abundant!

Anyways alot of the models are leaning towards some snow for Kentucky. How much exactly is yet to be known due to the fact that the snowfall output models only go as far as Tuesday when more snow is expected Wednesday and maybe early Thursday. Here's a look at the NAM Snowfall Output Model:

This is calling for as much as 8 in eastern Kentucky and a major snowstorm in the central App. Mts. I wanted to tell you that the latest model runs is calling for RECORD SNOWFALL for eastern Kentucky. This is something crazy going on and like I said above the mixture of a tropical system turning to snow has never happened!

Either way I fully expect some snow showers in our neck of the woods! I'll have several updates through out the weekend on my twitter and facebook feeds. Have a great day everyone and take care!

Winter Weather Forecast Part 1 of 3.

Good day everyone and welcome back to the blog! This is the day everyone has been waiting for a long time. I've been asked all the time "Do you think this winter will be bad?" I always said" I can't say right now I'm working on my Winter Weather Forecast." Well finally it's here! No more waiting here it is enjoy and let me know what you think!

Let's start with the El Nino. We're currently in a El Nino phase and what that is its warmer than normal waters off the western coast of South America in the Pacific ocean. Now at this point your probably saying "Okay, so what does this have to do with our weather here for the winter?" The answer is very simple.. Everything. Here's one example on what El Nino does with our weather patterns:

El Nino splits the Jet Stream into 2 seperate Jet Streams. One northerly and southerly. The northerly jet will bring all those cold shots down from Canada and as the southerly goes along Texas, Louisiana and other Gulf states, it brings in tons of moisture from the Gulf Of Mexico and right where the red "L" is on the map is where those jet streams becomes one again and thats where big snowstorms frequently occur with the very cold air and the abundant moisture. Like the picture says above this is the set up for a Weak to Moderate El Nino. If your a snow lover you want a weak El Nino.

Another factor into snowfall is blocking. Bolcking is simply a large area of high pressure sitting over Greenland and Alaska and doesn't move for long periods of time. The blocking over alaska allows the very cold Canadian air to dive deep into the southern United States, sometimes as far as Florida. What that does is creates a ridge in the west letting cold air dive down shot after shot deep into the United States and during winter that could put our temperatures in the low teens to single didgets overnight and sometimes as high temperatures.

Here's another example like the one shown above but from the good folks at Tornado Titans:

This is basically the same thing and remember the most northern jet stream brings all that very cold artic air down with it and the southerly jet sream brings the mositure from the Gulf of Mexico.

Now for the maps you all have been waiting for: Here's the 2012-2013 Winer Weather Forecast from Accuweather.com:

The folks at Accuweather are calling for an above average snowfall for our half of the state. Looking good so far right? ;)

Here's what I think for the average temperatures during the winter season:

I believe the further west you live this winter will be the closer to normal temperature wise you will be, and as you can tell I have the higher elevations of northeastern Kentucky and northern Kentucky around Covington and including Lexington at 1-3 degrees below normal. Then from our location westward then shifting northwestward including Louisville at 0-2 degrees below normal. I do believe that the several cold shots coming in from the northwest during the winter will make for a colder than normal winter. Now these lines will probably change by time I make my 2nd update and the 3rd and final Winter Weather Forecast update.

Now, here is the main course and this will answer any questions you all have about this winter, but before I show you this Image I want all of you to know this is just a PRELIMINARY FORECAST.
This is subject to change and WILL CHANGE. Thats why on the title you'll notice I put Part 1 of 3. I will be making changes through out rest the fall season.

Here it is. My first call for total snowfall map for the Winter of 2012-2013!

I know it's hard to see but folks thats 24-29" inches of snow I'm forecasting for our area. 30-35" for the higher elevations of eastern Kentucky, 16-21" in the north central parts of the state this does include Louisville. 19-23" for the south central part of the state including Bowling Green. Last but not least, 13-18" of snow for the western parts of the state including Paducah.

Yeah thats right folks. We could be talking about alot of snow here this winter. The average snowfall in Lexington is about 13" and maybe 18-20 here. Remember this is just a first estimate and if things holds the same with the El nino, and blocking we could be in for a wild ride this winter. I'll probably come down with the snowfall totals in the next updates although I'm not completely sure yet but I do know that they will change at least a little bit, but thats something to look out for.

Now with all of that above being said, I do believe there could be a few situations where we could see 6" or more of snow with any given system that moves through. Most snows will likely be 1-2 inches like usual, but like I just said with the way El Nino has been bouncing in and out of the Neutral and Weak phases we could see a little bit of everything. Personally I think El Nino may make a comeback. "This is the hardest winter to predict in several years past." This statement coming from several Meteorologists.

Please note, if El Nino conditions fade away and doesn't come back we may not get squat this winter. If it turns into a La Nina phase (which it is unlikely nor expected to do.), or a Neutral Phase then our snow chances could be ruined.

Thanks for reading everyone and let me know what you think with a tweet @ClaytonBanks1 a hit on  the ol' Facebook, or leave a comment on this blog post just be sure to leave me your name so I can thank you! I'll be giving shout outs on Facebook and Twitter for those who does leave a comment on this post on the blog or if you send me a message on what you liked and what you would like to see for next time. Thank you everyone for everything, without you this wouldn't be possible. All of you are the exact reason why I do this! Have a great day everyone and God Bless :)

Indian Summer!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this great Monday! I wanted to touch up on the upcoming forecast ahead and let you know about a few things I see in our furure!

Today high temperatures will range between 73-78 degrees with the record high for today in London being 81 degrees. Tomorrow high temperatures a touch higher between 74-79 degrees with partly cloudy skies. Wednesday highs between 75-80 degrees with partly cloudy skies, Tursday looks to be the most clear day with mostly sunny skies and high temperatures between 75-80 degrees. Friday will probably be the last day in the 70s with highs between 72-77 degrees.

I'm seeing a huge change in the weather come this weekend. Some models are talking about a tropical system just off the east-southeast coastline and a cold front moving in bringing some serious cold air. Ahead of it you will see tropical like temperatures and chances of thunderstorms and also some models are also talking about some snow on the back end of this.

I am also seeing the chance for an early start to the winter season sometime within the first 2 weeks of November. I'm not saying it will happen but there is certainly a chance because in years past we've gotten a taste of winter early. Plus the models have been pointing towards this for a while.

On another note, we're about a day and a half away from the release of my Winter Weather Forecast! It will be available on this blog ONLY! It will also be available as of 12am eastern on Wednesday! be sure to check it out and let me know what you think! If you give any feedback I'll give a big shout out to you on the ol' fackbook and/or twitter!

Have a great Monday everyone and take care! :)

Warm Up On The Way!

Hello everyone adn welcome back to the blog on this early Friday morning. Not much is going on weather wise around these parts so I'll cut to the chase quickly ha. As you know I've released the launch date for my Preliminary Winter Weather Forecast. October 24th is the date and that is now 12 days away! Get ready! Anyways I want to touch up on the weather in the short term here.

Today a warm front moves in and brings temperatures up back near normal. We'll start the day off chilly with could in the area. Those clouds will then clear out bringing high temperatures in the upper 60s near 70 degrees. Saturday looks great too with high temperatures in the mid and upper 70s. Sunday through Tuesday features temperatures in the 70s as well. We like to call this Indian Summer.

Friday and Saturday won't be so great for the folks in the midwestern states. There are expected to have a significant tornado outbreak. Take a look at the 850mb hight and wind forecast from the NAM model for Saturday in the midwest:

This was actually posted by Tornado Chaser Reed Timmer.Eastern Kansas and Western Missouri watch out, severe possibly tornado producing thunderstorms may be heading your way on Saturday!

I know the weather here is for the most part calm except for the early morning chills that nobody is quite used to yet :p. Anyways I hope you call can remember that in 12 days my Preliminary Winter Weather Forecast will be released so mark your calendars for October 24th! I hope all of you are excited. This should answer alot of questions I've been asked since July!

Have a great Friday everyone and take care! :)

Changes A Brewin'

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! Good Monday to you as well. Many of you was busy over the weekend at the Chicken Festival and now that it's over we go back to our normal lives. As the weekend was a busy one, today becomes a busy day for the weather and its shaping up to be a wild next few weeks as well.

Anyways, today as you can tell we'll get swamped with heavy rains. Somes areas here in southern Kentucky are expected to pick up 2-3 inches of rain before its all said and done. My eyes is on a pettern that could bring us our first freeze of the year and a early one at that! I know I posted a model forecast for this coming weekend that showed snowfall potential of a few inches in eastern Kentucky. Thats WILL NOT happen thats just the models going crazy like they always do when its a week out. That model was also a bit biased so to speak because of that one heck of a shot of cold air thats moving in.

Anyways, tomorrow Temperatures will rise into the 70s for highs and thats means we need to watch for strong to severe thunderstorms as we still have these tropical rains in place. Wednesday highs stay into the mid and upper 60s for highs, Thursday looks like a good day with highs in the low 70s. I am seeing some massive blocking in western Canada and what that means is below freezing temperatures this weekend into early next week!

I believe that massive blocking is a sign of what is to come this winter. Dang it another hit towards the almighty winter weather forecast! ;). I will give you all this much. If we continue to see this kind of blocking in the The Western Canada/Alaska area that could spell a rough winter for us.

Have a great day everyone and take care! :)

Chicken Festival Forecast Part 2

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! Today we had some showers and strong thunderstorms that moved through the area in which suprized some people due to how chilly it was outside at the time. Don't let that fool you, thats how Fall works ;). Anyways, I wanted to let you know that this isn't the last of the rain to be seen for the week. Take a look at the forecast rainfall from the HPC:

                                     This goes through Friday on the rainfall totals
Thats a sharp cutoff from North to south. This shows up to 2 inches of rain near Louisville and just 0.75 inches of rain down here. You can tell that the best shot of rain is the further north you live.

                                                 Chicken Festival Forecast
High temperatures this week will be better than the past few days. We will see highs back to normal for this time of year which is in the upper 70s near 80. Maybe a few low 80s can be seen as well. Thursday looks to be the best chance for rain at 40% but we'll see highs near 80 degrees. Friday looks to be just slightly less on the rain chances at 30% with a high around 78 degrees.

Temperatures take a bit of a fall on Saturday with a 20% chance of rain, highs in the low 70s. Sunday is much of the same with highs in the low 70s as well. Long story short, for those who have asked me which day looks better to go to the Chicken Festival I personally would go Saturday or Sunday due to the best weather days. In years past (especally last year) it has rained at least one day of the festival. Oh I forgot to tell you that low temperatures each night looks to be in the 50s with low 50s coming on Saturday and Sunday night. A chilly night for the enterainment :p

If you have any questions concerning the upcoming forecast or what we should see for the Chicken Festival, feel free to send a Tweet my way @ClaytonBanks1 or send me something on Facebook and I'll get back to you. Have a great day everyone and take care! :)

Chilly Start, Beautiful End To The Day

Good afternoon everyone and welcome back to the blog! I hope all of you are having a great Wednesday out there! Temperatures this morning really gave us a chill out there. Low temperatures were in the upper 30s in some places! Burr! We'll end the day nicely with high temperatures in the mid to upper 60s with a 70 or two out there as well. Not to mention NO CLOUDS ;)

Anyways the next few days looks to be great! Low temperatures tonight will head back south into the mid and upper 40s. Nowhere near as cold as last nights temperatures but chilly indeed. Tomorrow temperatures will warm back into the mid 70s for highs as the winds come out of the southwest. Friday much of the same with highs pushing 80 degrees. Saturday brings a bit cooler temperatures with highs in the low 70s.

Another cold front moves in the area for Sunday and Monday bringing cool temperatures again for those days. Highs looks to be in the 60s yet again! All signs point to this pattern coming to a stop in the near future, but!! Wait for it.... It will pick right back up towards the middle part of next month bringing even cooler temperatures. There looks to be maybe if we're lucky a 2-3 week break from this rollercoaster weather and bring temperatures back up to normal for highs.

More blocking is being indicated by the models for next month and if we can get that blocking to happen in the winter months then we'll be in business for some good snows! Can you believe it Winter is just a few months away! Who knows what Mother Nature has in store for us this year, but I can tell you this much this winter looks to be interesting! ;)

Have a great Wednesday everyone and take care! :)

Cool Down Ongoing, Chicken Fest Forecast

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! Yesterday and overnight last night was a huge washout! Radar estimates of 5 inches of rain in some areas. We should get the totals later today and I will post them on Facebook as Twitter when I get them. Anyways through out the day today temperatures will slowly drop from the mid 60s where most temperatures are at now to the upper and mid 50s by the late evening hours.

No that isn't where the tempertaures will stay for tonight. Depending on your location some area will clear out the clouds quicker than the others allowing for that area to cool down quicker. Low temperatures tonight can be anywhere from 35 to 45 depending on how quickly your area gets those clouds out of the way. It will be a cold start to your Wednesday and what I mean by cold is that the low temperatures in the morning will be way cooler than normal.

I wanted to take the last half of this post to not only inform you that the World Chicken Festival is back in town ( which you already know that ;p) from Sept. 27th-30th. Now with that being said, here is the forecast for those 4 days. (that is the forecast for now, because it will change trust me). On Thursday the 27th, we're looking at high temperatures in the low to mid 70s with low temperatures in the mid 50s. That looks to change as during the weekend another potent cold front looks to move through and bring temperatures way down. Low temperatures looks to be at this time pushing 32 degrees and that is a real threat for frost and high temperatures looks to be in the mid and upper 60s with a 70 or two.

More updates as they are needed and I will have more posts on the updated Chicken Festival Forecast in the coming days. Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Heavy Rains Usher In!

Good late morning/early afternoon everyone and welcome back to the blog! I've been very busy with the college life and it's left me little to no room for posting on the blog. I do promise though they blog will pick back up in activity as we head further into the fall season.

Today we have alot of rain pushing in from our south and west. This will produce heavy rains through out the day some of which could produce up to 4 inches of rain and maybe some locally higher amounts. That is why there is a Flood Watch for most of our area. Counties included are: Laurel, Knox, Whitley, McCreary, Pulaski, Rockcastle, Jackson, and Clay counties.

Here's what the GFS rainfall output is showing for today's rain totals:

Thats up to 5 inches of rain possible in some areas! Pack those raincoats!

The rain should move out by tomorrow morning but with that the potent cold front will move through too. As the rain stops, the clouds will hang around as temperatures crash through the day tomorrow. Possibly into the 50s by late evening hours. Wednesday could be a whole different story! Wednesday morning lows could be in the upper 30s! That all depends on how quick the clouds move out of your area. If they move out fast then temperatures have a greater shot at bottoming out into the 30s.

I will have more updates later on Twitter and Facebook as the day goes on and I will also try to get some rainfall totals posted as I get them and radar estimates. Have a great Monday everyone and take care! :)

A Hint Of Fall With A Big Announcement!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! This weekend has been a great one weather wise so far and will continue to be for the last half of the weekend. Temperatures have and will be in the mid and upper 70s for highs with low temperatures in the mid to low 50s making the feel like a beautiful fall day!

This weather came after a day of strong to severe thunderstorms followed by a cold front moving in from Canada directly to our north allowing for this beautiful and cool weather to move into our area. This great weather will not last too long, by Monday temperatures will return into the low 80s and by Wednesday temperatures may reach 85 degrees. Still thats alot better than having several days in the mid 90s ;).

I also have a announcement to make concerning my future predicting the winter weather. Some of you may know that over the past 2 years I have predicted school closings due to winter weather correctly. There has been alot of thought into this decision into if I will do so again this year. I will be trying to balance going to college and having a job this fall and winter so that may be alot to handle, but I will put what people call the "legendary streak" at stake by predicting those snow days again this year. I'm going to be a busy weather dude but hey I wouldn't have it any other way ;).

Have a great day everyone and weekend. Take care! :)

Hot And Dry Today, Storms Return For The Weekend

Hello everyone and thanks for stopping by the blog on this hot and dry afternoon! I haven't been posting much lately I've had alot going on but hopefully I can now post like I usally do! Anyways here's some topics I'll cover: Threat for severe thunderstorms late weekend, and Tropical Depression Five.

Let's start with today's weather. Rest of today looks great but hot, no rain looks to affect the area so we'll stay dry today and tonight. Overnight some models are picking up on a cluster of thunderstorms developing to our northwest and moving in here on our Friday. Showers and thunderstorms should move in here in waves. Saturday there is a chance of thunderstorms as well but I think our best bet is tomorrow.

This is the NAM model and this shows Saturday morning. Do you see the blue line coming down from Canada? Thats a cold front and it looks to move in here on Sunday and bring a severe weather outbreak across much of  the Ohio Valley and that does include the state of Kentucky. I'll be watching this one carefully.

The last topic is Tropical Depression Five. This depression is located thousands and thousands of miles from here. Take a look on where it's located:

Tropical Depression Five is moving to the west at 20mph. At this rate by Wednesday or so it should be very close to the Yucatan in Mexico. As of now there is no threat to the United States Gulf Coast, but we'll still have to watch it as it can grow into a hurricane and turn towards the gulf.

I'll have more in the coming days untill then take a look at my facebook at any time for local weather. Have a great Thursday everyone and take care! :)

Slight Risk For Severe Thunderstorms Tonight And Tomorrow

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog. I want to apologize for the lack of posts in the last two weeks. I've had alot going on plus I've been putting in some volunteer work untill my doctor releases me to go back to full work and let me tell you this it has worn me out! Anyways back to the weather, shall we? :)

Last week we had thunderstorm chances basically everyday and somedays thunderstorms have went severe and put down alot of rain. Everyone has been hoping for a break from the rounds of thunderstorms and rain and I don't want to be the one who brings bad news but all this week we look to have thunderstorm chances and a few days out of the week could be severe thunderstorm chances like late today and tomorrow.

Here's the slight risk area for severe thunderstorms for late today into early morning tomorrow:

This does include cities like London and Manchester but barely. Lexington and Covington have the best chance for severe thunderstorms for today.

Tomorrow is the day I'm a little conerned about, that has the slight risk over more of Kentucky and extending further west. It actually easily covers London, Somerset and all other cities in the coverage area. Here's a look at the Storm Prediction Centers Convective Outlook for tomorrow:

There's a hatched area of 30% in the eastern half of the state and that area starts at Clay County. Not sure yet if it will extend further west or decrease in size. That 30% is an increased risk in which could mean isolated tornadoes, large hail, and damaging winds.

I'll have more up on facebook as the storms start up! Have a great day everyone and take care! :)

Here Comes The Rain!

Hello everyone and good day to you! As you know the heatwave snapped a few days ago and when it did it brought some much needed rain. Remember when we used to say this as kids "rain, rain, go away. Come again some other day"? Well this weekend must be that "other day" because up to 3 inches of rain could fall between now and Sunday!

Take a look at what the HPC is saying for rainfall:

Yeah you're seeing this right. Western parts of Tennessee could pick up over 5 inches of rain. 1-3 inches of rain can been seen here on the homefront. What's going to happen is that front that moved through earlier this week stalled out over Tennessee and it's going to get some push and ris eback over Kentucky as a weak wave of low pressure is going to move along the front and thats whywe're going to see an increase of showers and thunderstorms into the day tomorrow and through the weekend.

Hopefully this will bring a dent in our drought. Especally out west because they're in a extreme drought and if this rain doesn't happen we could find restrictions on how we use our water and nobody wants that. I'll have more on the rain chances as we get closer! Have a great day everyone and take care! :)

Slight Risk For Severe Thunderstorms Tomorrow

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! This post is a breifing on what to expect for tomorrows thunderstorms. There is a slight risk for severe thunderstorms through out the day tomorrow ahead of an cold front that just might snap this heatwave.

Here's a look at tomorrow's threat:

That's the whole state of Kentucky included in that slight risk.

The timing of these storms isn't known exactly but we can say it looks to happen in the afternoon to evening hours, the further south you live the later it would be before you see any kind of rain or thunderstorm. The main threats with these storms will be damaging winds in excess of 60 to 70mph, and large hail. These storms will be just like Thursday's and winds could race out ahead of the storms just like Thursday's as well.

Thunderstorms will most likely cluster up and have a motion to the southeast, a frontal convergence could better the chances for severe thunderstorms. Some models show thunderstorms may not affect our area untill late in the day when any storms that happens overnight is always more dangerous because most people are in bed and not able to be aware of existing weather conditions.

I'll have more up through out the day today and tomorrow on my facebook. Now that I have it back I'll be able to be on through any thunderstorms that move through. Have a great day everyone, and stay safe! :)

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this hot Thursday! The heat didn't come alone as thunderstorms are expected to drop in from the north as the day goes by. Current timing for this storms show between 3-5 pm around here.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTILL 11PM EST FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES:




Large hail damaging winds are the main threats. A slight risk for severe thunderstorms does extend on further west to Louisville down to Bowling Green. On top of that we do have a heat advisory in effect and we would like to see more rain but not in the way of severe weather.

I'll have more on the storms as they get their act together, I'm using twitter today to send out quick updates because my Facebook was hacked the other day and I am still trying to recover my account, but even if you do not have twitter you can look on the side of the web page and see what I post on twitter.

Have a great day everyone be safe and take care! :)

Heatwave Update!

Hello everyone and thanks for stopping by the blog on this hot hot Friday! I want to start out by saying London has set a record high yesterday as did so many other cities. Mount Sterling set a record of 103 degrees, Barbourville and Monticello hit 101 degrees, Jackson hit 100, London hit 99, and Mount Vernon hit 98 degrees! Most of these temperatures got hotter than other summer months! Wow!

Today temperatures have risen even higher! Some temperatures have hit over 105 degrees! I do know that currently in London it's 104 degrees. I stepped outside for a moment and I felt like a pizza in the oven! haha anyways these temperatures looks to hang around through Sunday and there is a HEAT ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTILL 12AM SUNDAY FOR THE ENTIRE STATE OF KENTUCKY. TEMPERATURES CAN REACH UP TO 105 DEGREES WITH HEAT INDICIES NEARING 110 DEGREES!

How are we getting this heat? Well we have a huge ridge of high pressure engulfing most of the country and the ridge is so powerfull it isn't letting any of these weak cold fronts pass by and sweep through our area. Location just to our west and southwest have temperatures nearing 110 degrees. Yes, I said it and that is actual air temperatures with heat indicies hitting 115 degrees and higher!

The positive side of the heatwave is that we have a chance of storms up to your 4th of July. Those chances are few and far between but at this point we'll take whatever chance we can get! I'll be following our rain chances in the coming days and tomorrow we look to have a 30% chance of some thunderstorms. A storm or two would really knock off those temperatures a few degrees.

Little relief of the temperatures in our future, by this time next week temperatures will still be in the 90s but they will be in the low to mid 90s. I would rather see a 90 degree temperature than a 100 degree temperature any day. I'll have more updates as needed and as anything comes up. In the mean time do a rain dance or something for us! ;) Have a great day everyone and take care! :)

Record Heatwave!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! There isn't much to talk about in the weather world besides how hot we're going to get this week! Starting tomorrow actually! We're talking about record heat and temperatures hitting the 100 degree mark and above!

No heat advisorys, watches, or warnings have been issued for our area yet. I expect that to change soon as tomorrow we could be flirting with 100 degrees for your high temperatures. The hottest day looks to be either Friday or Saturday and by looking at some latest models some show temperatures could reach 105 degrees here in the southern and southeastern parts of the state.

I cannot stress enough how important it is to stay out of the heat. These temperatures are nothing short of unbearable. Even if you are not in the heat drink plenty of water to stay cool! There is a red flag warning that is in effect for much of the state due to low humidity levels and gusty winds and not to mention how dry the ground is. Speaking of a dry ground I promised you all with the new updated drought monitor map when it came out and here it is:

Thats a moderate drought now in parts of eastern Kentucky. Most of the state is in some kind of a drought at the moment. Western Kentucky is well into an extreme drought and all we can do now is hope for some rain.

I wanted to give you all a 7 day forecast to show how long this heatwave hangs around.
Tomorrow high 102 0% chance of rain
Friday high 105 0% chance of rain
Saturday high 104 10% chance of rain
Sunday high 103 10% chance of rain
Monday high 100 10% chance of rain
Tuesday high 100 10% chance of rain
Wednesday high 96 20% chance of rain.

Ouch! Hardly any chance of rain in sight! I'll have more on the heatwave with quick updates on facebook! Have a great day everyone! Stay safe and take care! :)

The Heat Is On

Hello everyone and welcome to the blog on this warm and muggy day here in southeastern Kentucky. Tomorrow we'll get a brief brake from the heat but if any of you seen the facebook statuses I've sent out this morning you know whats ahead for us and it's not looking good.

Here lately temperatures have been a bit above average and thats about to chance for late in the week. Thursday into Friday looks to be the hottest days by far of the young Summer season. Forecast high temperatures are showing 100 degrees for the high on Thursday and 101 for the high on Friday. Wow. The hottest days of the year is coming and maybe some tweaks in the forecast and I hope thats the case. We sure don't want those 100 degree temperatures in here. Some models have the heavwave ending Sunday and other have it going on with highs near 100.

On another note Tropical Storm Debby has been in the Gulf of Mexico for quite a while now and no model can agree on it's path, but with it being so close to Florida I believe now that it will come on shore on Florida. Here's the latest path:

Alot of things are still uncertain with Tropical Storm Debby at the moment. As you can tell, the end of the path is when it comes back off shore of Floridaand that looks to be on Saturday. Debby is one slow moving system and is dumping alot of rain on Florida not to mention 12 Tornadoes have been reported yesterday in Florida I believe that number is right correct me if I'm wrong.

Anyways the new drought index comes out tomorrow and theres a chance the whole state could be in a section of "abnormally dry" after that it becomes a slight drought. Western Kentucky is well into a severe drought and when the new index comes in I will post it on here.

Have a great Monday everyone and take care! :)

Mini Heat Wave Continues

Hello everyone and welcome to the blog! We have a mini heat wave that continues to hang around here and will do so untill Friday when we get a bit of relief in here but that will be short lived. Today temperatures will generally run in the 90-95 degree range with some light winds.

Tomorrow temperatures will run a bit warmer but generally in the 90-95 degree range again. The western parts of the state could see temperatures hit above 95 degrees. The humidity will still be with us making for a very muggy day. A cold front will move in late on the day Thursday into the day on Friday and will be some relief in the way of some showers and thunderstorms. Temperatures for the first half of the weekend will hold in the mid and upper 80s for highs.

Sunday temperatures soar back up into the mid 90s for most locations but that could spark off some thunderstorms, especally the further southeast you live. Monday the heat wave snaps as a trough moves over the Great Lakes and that will keep us in the chance for thunderstorms and it is looks more and more each day like a severe weather producer.

As you can probably tell, cracks are starting to form in the ground and it also starts to get very hard. We are a bit on the dry saide and any rain would be nice and would help as well. We don't want anyones mater plants to dry up now do we? ;)

Have a great day everyone and take care! :)

I'm Back!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog! I've had the blog on hold for about a month now and many of you know the reason why but for those whom don't, I was in a wreck and broke my femur. I was driving and hydroplaned and hit a big Oak tree. My best friend was with me and thank the lord we're okay.

Anyways today makes one month since the wreck, and I've been spending alot of time recovering and l me tell you first hand it isn't easy! Now I am able to make posts once again and so with that let's get to the weather!

Temperatures the next several days will top out at or above the 90 degree mark and the humidity will make it feel even hotter! Tomorrow most locations will be right around 90 degrees with the mid and upper 90s being very common across western Kentucky! Ouch thats hot! An isolated thunderstorm could pop up especally with the humidity being as high.

Thursday into Friday we'll see a cold front swing through and it will try to know temperatures down a few degrees and bring some rain chances our way. Speaking of rain the state is actually is pretty dry in some spots. Here's a look at the drought monitor:

Moderate drought in the west and some slight drought spots in south central and eastern Kentucky. Any rain will help! Especally in the west!

I'm looking at a shot of cool air trying to make its way back in for the start of the week and I'm also keeping an eye on the Gulf of Mexico for a threat of some tropical activity ;)

Thanks for being patient in my recovery process. I'm continuing to heal and all support is great! Have an awesome night everyone and take care! :)

Beautiful Sunday Ahead!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this Saturday evening/night. I've had a very busy past few days and was unable to put up a blog post but I'm back now and I will start posting everyday again. Anyways Friday and Saturday was two very beautiful days and you can wake up to another one tomorrow!

Sunday temperatures will rise to the mid and upper 80s for highs under mostly sunny skies. There will be that slight risk for a pop up shower or thunderstorm much like today. Other than that we're looking at another beautiful day out there and I don't know about you all but I will be hitting the lake ;).

Monday and Tuesday will be our next best shot at showers and thunderstorms. A cold front will move through the area sparking off some showers and thunderstorms ahead of the front. Temperatures will come down just a bit during the first part of your week, but by the end of the week temperatures may really spike up into the low 90s for highs! Wow! Summer is just around the corner.

As always if any showers or thunderstorms go up tomorrow I will send out a quick post on facebook. No matter where I will be I never take a day off. Have a great night everyone and an even better Sunday! :)

Rain To Hang, Warm To Follow

Hello everyone and good Monday to you! We had a washout of a Mother's Day and now we're wanting the warm weather back! When will that warm weather be back that everyone wants? I'll get to that in just a minute.

Today we will see the chance for more rain, in the afternoon and into the evening hours. Temperatures will warm in the mid to upper 60s for highs in the east and the low 70s to the west. A rumble of thunder cannot be ruled out either as some of these showers try to get going later today. Chance of rain is at 70%. I know that chance is still higher than what we want to see, but just bare with me cause I have some good news.

Some rain showers may try to linger into the morning hours of your Tuesday but they will eventually move out. Highs will be back in the low 70s right around our average temperature for this time of year. Everyone wants to know about that 80 degree weather that would be great for lake time. I have the answer on when that will come back to us!

Friday temperatures loks to spike into the 80s with mostly clear skies through out the day and you can expect the same for your Saturday and Sunday as well, but on Sunday we could be talking about 90 degree temperatures coming to the state. The best shot at seeing that 90 degree temperatures is in the western parts of the state. The humidity will be up as well. Making for the chance for showers and thunderstorms to pop up at any point on those days.

I'll have more on the upcoming warm up in the days ahead. Have a great Monday everyone and take care! :)

Soggy Mother's Day!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this very wet Sunday and Happy Mother's Day to all of you moms and moms to be out there. I wish I could have brought you a nice day for today but I can only predict the weather.

Anyways things doesn't look to be better later today either as this rain looks to stick around untill late Morning hours tomorrow and may even linger through out the day tomorrow as well. High temperatures today will struggle to the mid and upper 60s for highs due to the rain and clouds out there. The chance of rain for today was at 100% and tomorrow it's at 50%. We do need some rain but we all was wishing it would have held off for a bit untill after we got our Mother's Day plans out of the way.

By time all this rain is all said and done some area could really pick up some decent totals. One model had Somerset picking up on 2.50 inches of rain and London coming in at 2.15 inches. If that holds true we could be looking at some local flooding and ponding of roadways. If you are traveling today please be sure to slow down and if water is on the roadways remember turn around, don't drown.

Monday temperatures do come back up though to right around 70 degrees for the high, Tuesday through Thursday temperatures will be in the upper 70s to almost 80 degrees with mostly sunny skies. Things are also looking good for the first half of your weekend. More on that in the coming days!

Have a great Mother's Day everyone and take care! :)

Take A Walk On The Cool Side

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this very nice Wednesday! Sorry for the lack of post over the past few days I've been on the sick side and it's taking quite a bit to get this post up. Anyways I have an outlook for Graduation Saturday and Mother's Day Sunday and we'll get to that in just a minute.

In the short term temperatures will back off and will actually be below average for the first time in a long while. Today temperatures will hold steady in the low 70s for highs and actually our average temperature is about 73 degrees so we're not too below average but we will be for the day tomorrow as temperatures will only reach the mid 60s for highs. Lows tonight looks to be cool into the mid 40s! Ouch!

Low temperatures for the last day of school in Laurel County looks to be a cold one! Temperatures could dip all the way into the 30s! Check the GFS model:

Thats upper 30s and some areas may reach as low as the low 30s especally in the valleys.

Friday will warm to be a nice day with highs in the mid 70s. Graduation Day for my former high school on Saturday looks awesome. Beautiful weather with high temperatures in the upper 70s flirting with 80 degrees! Mother's Day looks a bit tricky with the thunderstorm chances back just in time for Sunday, other than the storm chances temperatures will be in the 70s.

Thunderstorm and rain chances looks to carry on into next week especally early in the week. I'll fine tune the forecast for Graduation Day and Mother's Day weekend in the coming days! Have a great Wednesday everyone and take care! :)

Thunderstorms Possible Today!

Hello everyone and welcome to the blog on this very nice Monday! I was going to post earlier about the storm chances for today but then again I'm glad I didn't because the Storm Prediction Center took the slight risk for severe thunderstorms out of our area. Thats the first time I've ever seen anything like that.

I do think the chance for strong and severe thudnerstorms does still exist. They took the severe risk out because of a line of storms moving through Mississippi has robbed some of the instability for severe thudnerstorms for our area, but there still will be some instability that gets in here today and allowing the chance for strong and some severe thunderstorms to develop and that would be with the heating of the day.

Temperatures for today will be in the low to mid 80s for highs and the skies however will be in between sunny to mostly cloudy at any time during the day. If we was to stay sunny all day then we would be talking about highs in the upper 80s. But that isn't the case for today.

If any storms develop I will be tracking them all day long and I will give you all a heads up if any of those storms does go severe! Have a great Monday everyone and take care! :)

Severe Thunderstorms Is Back!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on your Friday and as we all know today is the running for the Oaks at Church Hill Downs! I don't want to be the guy who brings the bad news but it could be a wet run for today's races.

We do have a slight risk for severe thunderstorms for today. Check it out here:

Thats most of Kentucky in the slight risk. This does include cities like, London, Somerset, Richmond, and Ashland on westward.

Some models even show the chance for a squall line developing later in the day but as of now thats hard to say if that will happen or not. I can say there will be a good shot at thunderstorms today and the main threats will be large hail, and damaging winds, but an isolated tornado or two cannot be ruled out.

These storms will have a northwest to southeast motion on them as well as they will be multicellular storms. Meaning that one storm will pulse up and die out and another storm will pulse up right where the other one was making the storm look like it's been going for a while when in fact it was numerous storms all along.

Some areas may see some storms come in waves and some may cluster up like they would form a small squall line. Right now the timing looks to be in the later part of the day today but storms could fire at anytime though.

Like always I'll be watching this very closely through out the day today and any updates will go out on facebook! have a great Friday everyone and take care! :)

Thunderstorms And Heat!

Hello everyone and good Thursday to you! Yesterday we experenced hot temperatures that normally doesn't happen so early in May and it was our one day break in the thunderstorm action as storms try to move back in today.

Today temperatures may not reach as high as they did yesterday due to the overall cloud cover and the shot at some thunderstorms moving though. The best chances for thunderstorms is in the central, south central, and southeastern parts of Kentucky for today. High temperatures looks to be in the mid to upper 80s. I'm thinking right around 86 degrees.

The heat has been something most people has been noticing this week. I've been asked how long will this heat last? Well some models are showing a cool down on Tuesday into Wednesday of next week and I do believe this up and down pattern will continue for a while.

The Kentucky Derby is Saturday and if you are planning to go make sure to be weather aware as the threat of thunderstorms will be there all weekend long. The Oaks on Friday will be about the same, the heat will be a factor for both days as temperatures will be in the mid to upper 80s yet again.

On a side note, anytime we have a very summer like pattern this early in May it will also bring the chance for showers and thunderstorms, so make sure to be weather aware for tomorrow into the weekend as there is a slight risk for severe thunderstorms tomorrow but that will stay mainly to our west... For now.

I'll be watching the weather and if there is any updates I will share them with you via Facebook like always but for now, have a great Thursday and take care everyone! :)

Hot, Hot, Hot!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on this unseasonably hot Wednesday! Shew you could really tell today was going to be hot whenyou stepped outside at 11am this morning and the temperature read 82 degrees here in London! This heat is here to stay through the weekend and will increase thunderstorm chances for the weekend as well.

Today will be just flat out hot with high temperatures flirting with 90 in most areas and a few locations may get above 90 degrees! This is mid- July type of weather! We could also see a thunderstorm or two develop today but odds are against it as we have a flat trough in place and also a layer of warm air aloft (CAP). Storms will have a hard time firing up with the trought and the cap in place thats why we're only calling for a few storms to pop later.

Thunderstorms are expected to be over the area for the weekend and look at the GFS is saying for rainfall forecast through the weekend:

Thats up to 4 inches of rain in some areas! Wow!

April was by far a quiet month fo severe weather and I believe it's been the quietest April in years past. I have a hunch on May trying to make up for the lost time so to speak. I sure hope not but likealways I'll be watching it to see what goes on.

Have a great Wednesday everyone and take care! :)

A Hot Week Ahead

Hello everyone and good Monday to you! Today kicks off another week and man will this one be a hot one! Highs will be in the upper 80s for much of the work week. Could some locations hit a 90? We'll get to that in a bit.

There is a slight risk for severe thunderstorms today but that will stay to our north, but we can not rule out a chance for a few thunderstorms in our area though. The next thing is about these warm temperatures. The conditions on a day like today reminds me of the three H's of summer. Hazy, Hot, and Humid. You can take the Hazy part off thought as we will not see any hazy conditions out there but the heat and humidity will be in place.

The temperatures will be on top of the weather headlines for this week. Especally on Wednesday and Thursday where there will be less of a storm threat and that means a even higher chance of the temperatures soaring into the upper 80s and maybe even a 90 or two. Even this weekend will be hot, the Kentucky Oaks and the Kentucky Derby will be hot. Drink plenty of water and dress on the cool side!

This week sure is shaping up to be the warmest week so far of 2012! Is this any sign of whats to come for Summer? We'll just have to wait and find out! Have a great Monday everyone and take care! :)

Severe Thunderstorms Is Back

Hello everyone and good late Saturday morning to you out there. Today we will have a very warm and windy day ahead of those severe thunderstorms that will fire up and move in here later today.

Here is the Storm Prediction Center's latest product, check it out here:

Most of Kentucky is in this but I would say all of the state has a good chance of seeing thunderstorms at some point today.

These storms will mainly be damaging winds, and large hail producers. On Thursday some storms produced tennis sized hail stones! Wow! Thats impressive for it being in Kentucky ;). There's the chance for it happening again today!

Today temperatures will be in the upper 70s fo highs for most of the state. Temperatures in southern Kentucky are already there! The winds will start to crank up and that will be ahead of any storm that pops.

I'll have more updates throught out the day on facebook as I send out those quick updates! Have a great Saturday everyone and take care! :)

Storms, Storms, And Oh, More Storms

Good Friday morning everyone and welcome back to the blog! The last two days has been filled with stormy ones around here and today looks to be our break in the action as Saturday looks to be another active one here on the homefront for us. Let's get to it folks.

First things first, today will be a more quiet day with a chance for a stray shower or thunderstorm. Highs look to be in the 70s  for most locations especally in the south and to the west. A warm front moves back through here late tonight and along it could be a few showers or a stray thunderstorm. Tomorrow temperatures soar into the mid and upper 70s with thunderstorms back in our area. We do have a slight risk for severe thunderstorms tomorrow. Check it out here:

Thats most of kentucky in the slight risk! Large hail, and damaging winds are the main threats. We're still a day away from this unfolding so I'll keep an eye on it. I do expect the slight risk line on the southern edge to extend a bit further south, but we'll see.

80 degree temperatures looks very likely for most of next week! That may bring chances of thunderstorms with it as well. Take a look at the temperature forecast from the GFS model for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday:

Can you say 85 degrees? Can you say time to go to the lake? ;) I sure can!

Have a great day everyone and take care! :)

More Severe Thunderstorms

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on yet another active weather day for us! Yesterday evening/night we saw a few rounds of showers and thunderstorms move through the area and some of those storms did go severe but the good news is there was very little damage. I am currently running on very little sleep and have no signs on catching back up on it as we have a slight risk for more severe thunderstorms through out the day today, check it out here:

As you can see thats most of the state of Kentucky in that slight risk, the best chance being in southern and southeastern Kentucky. We saw a few severe thunderstorms move though the area early this morning and they did cause some minor damage along the way mainly trees being downed.

Today temperatures will warm back up into the low and mid 70s for highs and that will trigger the thunderstorms to develop in the late afternoon to early evening hours. The main threats with these thunderstorms is large hail, and damaging winds. Of course you can't forget about the locally heavy rains and frequent cloud to ground lightning.

Like always if any watches or warning are issued or if I just want to give you all an update on the weather or any changes I'll send out quick updates via Facebook! Have a great Thursday everyone and take care! :)

Slight Risk For Severe Thunderstorms!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the blog on your Wednesday. We have a chance for severe thunderstorms today and it looks to be a late evening to overnight event. Take a look at the latest SPC (Storm Prediction Center) outlooks:

The main threats with these thunderstorms is large hail, damaging winds, and the chance for an isolated tornado or two. Take a look at the tornado chances for today:

The highest chance being in northern Kentucky but as you can see most of southern, central, and eastern Kentucky is in this with at least a small chance of seeing a tornado.

Today looks to be a nice day for the most part with high temperatures in the 70s across the state with plenty of sunshine! It will be later today when the thunderstorms start to fire up to our northwest ahead of a sinking cold front and move in here late in the evening into the overnight hours.

I will have more updates later with quick updates via Facebook! Have a great Wednesday everyone and take care! :)

Spring Snowstorm East!

Hello everyone and welcome to the blog on this cold Sunday! You all are about to say "What the heck???" when I tell you the forecast ahead... Especally for tonight. So let's get to it shall we? ;)

SNOW! Is in the forecast for tonight and we're talking about a snowstorm to our east! Some models were talking about upwards of 2 feet of snow to the Appalachians! Wow!
Take a look at the NAM map for snowfall projections:

Thats the potential for a dusting in the eastern parts of the state for tonight! Snow tonight but for Wednesday into Thursday we have a chance for strong to severe thunderstorms! This is going to be a busy weather week and that always means a busy week for this weather dude ;)

I'll have more updates later today as the system moves in and I hope I can get a full update in later today if not it will be up tomorrow. Have a great Sunday everyone and take care! :)