Weather in Iowa: Expect more snow and ice through the weekend

Updated: December 12, 2024, 10:33 p.m. CST

DO YOU KNOW WHY? AND IT WILL BRING A LOT OF JOY TO A LOT OF PEOPLE. BUT the weather that awaits us at least at the beginning of the weekend is really no joke. IT’S NOT A JOKE. And you might want to stay inside and just call the number because we have a chance of that freezing rain coming in. Let’s get straight to the point. YOU CAN SEE COLD FROM TOMORROW. WE HAVE AIR TEMPERATURES IN THE SINGLE DIGIT RANGE. SOME NORTHERN PARTS OF THE STATE WILL LIKELY RECEIVE WIND COOLING BELOW ZERO, AROUND 7 OR 8 TO EVEN TEN. While it’s blowing directly from the south, and that will bring warmer air, it’s going to take a long time to get here, which means that surface will still be there when we see the rain come in. It is frozen and the temperature is below freezing, which means there will be ice FORMATION. YOU CAN SEE THESE BAGS IN PINK HERE. This is the freezing rain making its way north. 7 p.m. We have this on the edge of the metro, west toward Carroll Lake. PANORAMA JEFFERSON, TO CRESTON AND EVEN GREENFIELD. And we’ll continue to see the moisture build up. IT WILL START OUT RELATIVELY LIGHT, BUT EVEN LIGHT FREEZING RAIN AND FREEZING RAIN MAY BE ENOUGH TO COATE SOME SURFACES AND LEAD TO SOME SLIPPY SPACES. So please again: If you don’t need to be out tomorrow night and early Saturday morning, then don’t be. It’s going to be really bad conditions out there. WE HAVE REPORTS OF AREAS THAT ARE BEING TREATED BUT THEY STILL HAVE THE ICE POTENTIAL THERE AND THAT WILL ADVANCE FURTHER EAST. LOOK AT HOW HARD THIS IS FOR GRINNELL OTTUMWA EASTERN TOWARD IOWA CITY. While we head out until 6am, this may take even longer. AGAIN. Just depends on how quickly the air can warm up when it comes in from the south. So we’ve largely eliminated the freezing rain and freezing drizzle on Saturday evening. BUT WE STILL HAVE RAIN, AND THERE ARE PLACES WHERE IT COULD RECEIVE EVEN HALF AN INCH TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN. Before this is said and done. So let’s break down the ice tracker for you here as we work our way into the evening hours. EARLY MORNING HOURS. WE HAVE ALREADY RECORDED 8/10 OF EIGHT HUNDREDTHS (sorry Metro, with significantly higher amounts in the eastern parts of the state). That seems to be the slam dunk with this system, although we may see some areas, even in the northwest part of the state, see some pretty significant rises and they could also linger under some of that freezing drizzle and freezing rain for an extended period of time. So this continues from Sunday to Saturday evening before it finally comes to us. But that’s not the only thing we have to deal with. We continue to have winds gusting to five miles per hour in 2020. THESE CONTINUE ON FRIDAY EVENING AND ALSO UNTIL SATURDAY MORNING. In areas to the east that may see 2/10 to 1/4 inch rise, you should consider the possibility of some of these tree branches drooping a bit. There may also be intermittent power outages. BUT THESE CALM UP UNTIL SUNDAY MORNING. So that’s good news, but for us it’s not necessarily a productive snow gun. WE HAVE THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME OF THE NORTHERN PARTS OF THE STATE TO RECEIVE SOME, AND NORTHEASTERN IOWA IN PARTICULAR COULD SEE AROUND 2 TO 3 INCHES IN PLACES. BUT THE MAIN THREAT WE SEE HERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR FREEZING RAIN AND ICE COLLECTION. For this reason, we have designated these days as “Impact Days” as this could lead to dangerous travel. Then the melting begins. We’ll be in the mid 40s on Sunday

Weather in Iowa: Expect more snow and ice through the weekend

Updated: December 12, 2024, 10:33 p.m. CST

Our days in the freezer are numbered with another icy morning ahead on Friday. Closures | Interactive Radar | Weather Warnings Temperatures will drop into the single digits and wind chills will be near zero again. Clouds will build in Friday before our next severe storm will bring a mix of rain, sleet, freezing rain and even snow to parts of the state. The first signs of freezing rain will arrive in southwest Iowa around 5-6 p.m. and move toward the metro around 7-8 p.m. A lobe of air above freezing in the air allows any precipitation that falls to melt entirely within that layer and fall as rain (and some sleet) on a surface that has been well below freezing for some time. Because of this, there will likely be a rapid spread of ice across the state from southwest to northeast Friday evening until surface temperatures finally climb back above freezing by Saturday morning. Ice accumulations in far southern Iowa appear to be a glaze at best, with central parts of the state (including the metro) reaching around 0.05 to 0.10 inches. Winds could reach up to 0.15 inches in some parts of northern Iowa, while eastern parts of the state near Iowa City could reach 0.2 inches. As winds increase to around 20 to 25 mph throughout the day, we need to watch for strong disturbances in the areas where the heaviest icing occurs. That being said, it doesn’t take much ice to make the roads treacherous. So please reconsider your travel plans if you have these Friday evening and Saturday morning. The northern half of the state in particular may experience persistent freezing drizzle Saturday, resulting in persistent icy conditions on roads. As warmer, above freezing air continues to flow from the south, we will see a transition from freezing rain to gradual rain from south to north across the state. There is still some uncertainty about how long this will last, particularly for the northern parts of the state. Temperatures will warm into the upper 30s on Saturday and eventually reach the mid 40s on Sunday and Monday. An isolated shower cannot be ruled out on Monday as temperatures gradually fall back to around freezing point by Thursday. Weather Forecast for Iowa: Tonight: A few clouds here and there. Low 10F. East winds 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow: Partly cloudy, more clouds later in the day. Rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow are possible later Friday. High 30F. Winds southeast at 10 to 20 mph. Tomorrow night: Chance of rain/freezing rain. Low 25F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph.

DES MOINES, Iowa –

Our days in the freezer are numbered with another icy morning ahead on Friday.

Closures | Interactive Radar | Weather warnings

Temperatures will drop into the single digits and wind chills will be near zero again. Clouds will build in Friday before our next severe storm will bring a mix of rain, sleet, freezing rain and even snow to parts of the state.

The first signs of freezing rain will arrive in southwest Iowa around 5-6 p.m. and move toward the metro around 7-8 p.m. A lobe of air above freezing in the air allows any precipitation that falls to melt entirely within that layer and fall as rain (and some sleet) on a surface that has been well below freezing for some time. Because of this, there will likely be a rapid spread of ice across the state from southwest to northeast Friday evening until surface temperatures finally climb back above freezing by Saturday morning. Ice accumulations in far southern Iowa appear to be a glaze at best, with central parts of the state (including the metro) reaching around 0.05 to 0.10 inches. Some parts of northern Iowa could get up to 0.15 inches, while eastern parts of the state near Iowa City may get up to 0.2 inches.

As winds increase to around 20 to 25 miles per hour throughout the day, we need to be alert for any power outages in areas experiencing the heaviest icing. That being said, it doesn’t take much ice to make the roads treacherous. So please reconsider your travel plans if you have these Friday evening and Saturday morning.

The northern half of the state in particular may experience persistent freezing drizzle Saturday, resulting in persistent icy conditions on roads. As warmer, above freezing air continues to flow from the south, we will see a transition from freezing rain to gradual rain from south to north across the state. There is still some uncertainty about how long this will last, particularly for the northern parts of the state. Temperatures will warm into the upper 30s on Saturday and eventually reach the mid 40s on Sunday and Monday.

An isolated shower cannot be ruled out on Monday as temperatures gradually fall back to around freezing point by Thursday.

Iowa Weather Forecast:

Tonight: A few clouds now and then. Low 10F. Wind Direction: East-East at 5 to 10 miles per hour.

Morning: Partly cloudy, more clouds later in the day. Rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow are possible later Friday. High 30F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph.

tomorrow evening: Rain/freezing rain possible. Low 25F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph.