It has been a cool, cloudy, breezy spring in Missouri, with highs often below 70 F and lows near 50. Plants are a good week or two behind schedule and we have yet to experience a summer-like evening. But all will change for the next 48 hours.
The deep trough that has brought unusually cold weather to the West is beginning to shift eastward and lift northward; in other words, the dip in the jet stream is widening and, at the same time, flattening out. The leading edge of the trough is advancing toward the Midwest and Southern Plains as a cold front and, ahead of this front, warm, humid air is streaming northward into the Heartland. A wedge of summer will poke into our region over the next two days, pushing highs into the mid 80s and setting the stage for severe thunderstorms; the low tonight is forecast to remain above 70.
As the cold front continues to advance and flatten out (west to east), we'll return to more seasonal conditions but should stay above the range of our recent Canadian spring. Summer will likely entrench itself by June and we can begin complaining about the heat!
