INDIANAPOLIS — The record-breaking snowfall is long gone both figuratively and literally. There's nothing left on the ground of Indianapolis' daily record 3.2" snowfall from yesterday. That marked the earliest 3"+ snowfall since 1997 and one of only 9 years on record with a 3"+ snowfall this early in the season.
Left in its wake is plenty of clouds today with occasional lake effect rain showers now that the atmosphere has warmed enough. Despite the cloud cover, temperatures are 15°+ warmer than 24 hours ago and it feels some 25° warmer than the stinging windchills during the snow Thursday.
This blanket of clouds hangs around this evening for semi-state Operation Football games with temperatures hovering in the 40s during much of the games.
Weekend forecast
We'll wake to more gray Saturday morning but there's some hope of late-day sun emerging from west-to-east Saturday afternoon. However, areas east of I-65 may remain cloudy much of the day due to continued influence from Lake Michigan.
Sunday will easily be the brighter and milder days this weekend with highs well in the 50s and sunshine mixing with high clouds. The milder air is part of a brief warm-up Sunday into Monday and will be the warmest air we'll have for awhile.
Rain overspreads central/southern Indiana during the day Monday along a front boundary that gradually moves through the state. That front eventually stalls near/just south of the Ohio River and becomes the conveyor belt for a bout of precipitation sometime Wednesday into Thanksgiving morning.
Even colder likely after Thanksgiving
It's uncertain at this time what atmospheric temperature profiles will be and whether it will be mainly liquid precip, mixed precip, or frozen. There are multiple scenarios and the possibility that any precipitation is farther removed to the south.
What we're much more confident in saying is that even colder air looks likely to arrive the day after Thanksgiving into the beginning of December. Well below average temperatures (highs in the 30s and lows in the teens) are favored during that time with bouts of snow possible as well.
Please check for specifics regarding the severity of the cold, potential precipitation impacts to Thanksgiving travel, and additional snow potential Circle Of Lights into next weekend.
