INDIANAPOLIS — Central Indiana is in the midst of a pleasant streak of November days. This marks the sixth day in a row of mainly sunny conditions and fourth straight well in the 60s. The shelf life on the mild air expires Friday afternoon with an expiration of dry weather overnight.
Plan on a breezy and damp Friday morning with showers likely and temperatures in the mid/upper 50s. Daytime highs Friday occur before midday due to the timing of a cold front crossing through the state Friday afternoon.
Rain showers and clouds diminish from northwest to southeast between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Friday as drier, colder returns. Temperatures drop into the 40s areawide by sunset and then it's clear, cold weather for Operation Football games. Plan to dress for windchills in the 30s before the 4th quarter.
Unfortunately, the front doesn't bring widespread heavy rain to central Indiana, with amounts ranging from just over a trace to possibly areas of .25"-.40" near/southeast of I-70. Hardly enough to bust up moderate drought conditions currently in place over the southern half of the state.
Many areas haven't recorded any rain this month and, to date, it's the seventh-driest November on record in Indianapolis, with only .16" rainfall since Nov. 1. That would be one of the driest Novembers on record for Indy, but we expect plenty of moisture between now and the end of the month with several system crossing the Ohio Valley.
The first, and a weak one, on Friday brings mainly light showers, but delivers chillier air for the weekend. Lows in the 20s Saturday recover to near 50° with sunshine Saturday afternoon.
Sunday remains sunny and, with a wind shift to the south, will finish warmer in the mid-50s. Bottom line, it will be a pleasantly crisp, sunny weekend.
We continue to advertise a stronger system next week with widespread rain and wind from Monday afternoon to Tuesday night, possibly finishing with some snowflakes mixing as colder air wraps into the Ohio Valley.
There's growing confidence a much colder air arriving just in time for Thanksgiving, with "highs" in the 30s. Right now we're forecasting dry conditions, but there's potential for another system or two later next week. Stay tuned.
