Now that fall has arrived, we’re getting closer to the days when grabbing a light jacket before leaving the house is more than just wishful thinking. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), areas of South and Central Texas may see an unusual cold front this week, coupled with some severe weather.
The cooler air is moving in from the southern plains and should reach the Texas-Oklahoma line late Tuesday, September 23. Forecasters anticipate that San Antonio and its neighboring areas will have cooler—and wetter—temperatures the next day.
Much further north, sections of Dallas and Fort Worth could get hail and destructive winds when it arrives.
“Scattered storms will form along and ahead of the cold front, which will enter North Texas late Tuesday and extend southeast through the evening. “Some strong to severe storms will be possible, with damaging wind gusts and large hail,” the NWS Fort Worth office stated.
“This will bring showers and thunderstorms through South-Central Texas, with the best chances occurring during the afternoon of Wednesday,” the NWS San Antonio/Austin Office noted.
They say all good things come to those who wait, and that will be the case for many this week. We’ll have to endure a couple more hot and dry days until the middle of the week.
“High temperatures will rise a few degrees today [Monday, September 22] and Tuesday,” the NWS San Antonio/Austin Office reported. “High temperatures will be much above normal, with some areas south and southwest of San Antonio approaching triple digits.
Humidity will be high enough across the Coastal Plains to cause heat indices to approach the Heat Advisory level Tuesday.”
Mid-week temperatures in San Antonio and Austin will drop by ten degrees due to a Texas cold front.
Relief is forecast that night, with a 20% probability of showers after 1 a.m. On Wednesday, temperatures in the Alamo City are forecast to plummet by 10 degrees.
Local highs are anticipated to hit 95 degrees and lows will be 78 degrees. On Thursday, those temperatures will drop to a windy 89 and 70 degrees, before gradually rising again throughout the weekend.
Meanwhile, Austin could experience significantly colder temperatures. On Wednesday, highs are anticipated to reach only 93 degrees, with lows of 77 degrees. The next day, those temperatures are 89 and 70 degrees, and the city’s lows continue to fall during the second half of the week.
Rainy weather is expected in the region at the same time as the front. There is a 60% chance of rain on Wednesday, with showers possible after 1 p.m. Conditions should clear before a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms return after nightfall.
“Perceptual water values will be near 2.0 inches ahead of the front, and we could see some locations in the Coastal Plains get an inch or two of rain Wednesday night,” according to the National Weather Service’s forecast.
A small (30 percent probability) of showers persists throughout Thursday morning, when the front begins to weaken and pass to the southeast of the country.
Though it may feel like it took long to arrive, the colder weather is typical for the region.
In an earlier interview, NWS meteorologist Monte Oaks told MySA that this month normally sees a transition from mid-70 to low-70 normals.
“You really see the more sharper drop-off in mid-temperature averages in the mid-September timeframe,” Oaks told me.
