01/20/2022
Winter is coming! Right now we are looking at possible sleet in a lot of the Valley late tomorrow night - early Friday morning. Far western and northern sections of the Valley may also see some freezing rain.
This complicated image shows how sleet forms and why we are not likely to see snow. Notice the layer of air at about 5,000 feet (about a mile above us) that is still relatively warm - in the low 40s. Any snow that falls through that layer will melt into raindrops. There's a cold layer just below that - at about 3,000 feet, which should be slightly below freezing. That means some of those raindrops will re-freeze. That's sleet - which a lot of us could see. Sleet looks like little ice pellets falling from the sky. They can bounce - and if enough falls, it can accumulate (that's rare).
For most of the Valley, the temperature here at the ground is expected (at this point) to stay slightly above freezing. So, we'll see a mix of rain and sleet. IF the temperature drops a few more degrees to freezing (32°) or below - the falling raindrops could begin to freeze on surfaces like bridges, cars etc. That's freezing rain and is very dangerous. The best chance for that to happen is in Starr County and Northern Hidalgo County.
All of this is expected LATE THURSDAY NIGHT INTO VERY EARLY FRIDAY.
And, of course, it's going to be a huge temperature change from today to tomorrow. We'll be in the 80s this afternoon - and in the 30s by the end of Thursday. Grab your warmest coat! It's going to get nasty out there! Welcome to winter.