Northeast Arkansas has seen its share of rain over the last 24 hours, specifically in Craighead and Poinsett counties while Memphis has only received a few drops as of this post.  Here is an estimation of how much rain fell last night and today.

Notice some of the estimates correlate to in excess of two inches.  Thankfully there has been a break this afternoon but flooding was a concern earlier in these areas.  More rain is possible tonight, but it should not be anywhere near as heavy comparatively.  Look for scattered showers throughout our Wednesday as everyone at least has a shot of getting wet.  That does not mean that every location will receive a shower, but be prepared at any point during your day.  Thanks for reading our blog!  Leave us a comment…

This image taken from Storm Track Dopper 5 HD this morning at 8:20 CDT shows a wide band of rain that has been falling through the overnight hours over eastern Arkansas, the Missouri Bootheel, and northwest Tennessee.  Nexrad estimates indicate 2 to 6 inches of rain that has fallen within the area outlined in magenta.   Just to the left of that area lies a stationary front.  A strong ridge of high pressure off the eastern seaboard is blocking the progression of that front.  That combined with a steady flow of Gulf moisture, indicated by yellow arrows, and an upper level jet streak that came through overnight and early this morning are producing the heavy rain over that area.  The entire system has been slow to move east and it’s quite likely that much of northern Mississippi and West Tennessee along the Tennesse River Valley will get little if any rain today.  The jet streak should exit the region around midday which will eliminate the additional lift thus reducing the intensity of the rainfall.  The stationary front will drift over the Action News 5 coverage area through Wednesday so rain will remain in the forecast.  However, it looks like there will be a break late in the day and overnight.  As we warm up Wednesday more rain will develop especially futher east into West Tennessee.  This front should lift north of the region late Wednesday and limit our rain chances for Thursday and most of Friday.  Another cold front will approach from the north northwest during the day Friday increasing cloud cover and bringing another round of rain Friday night and Saturday.  This front too will stall over the Mid-South through the weekend keeping slight chances for rain Sunday and Monday as well.

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman Oklahoma issues severe weather risks for specific areas several times a day.  Here is their very latest map.

Notice that Memphis is barely in the Slight risk area.  We have been watching the situation throughout the day and it appears the strongest storms will remain to our West.  We will, however, continue to carefully track the system should there be any significant changes.  Most, if not all, of us will see rain from this disturbance and some of it could be heavy for a few.  Keep the umbrella handy in the coming days as the Mid-South has numerous rain chances through Wednesday.

While the Mid-South is quiet tonight, storms are rumbling through the Plains states.  Numerous warnings are ongoing.  Check out the latest radar!

Extremely large surface High pressure to our East will protect the Mid-South from this system.  Get ready for another warm day on Sunday.  It will be breezy too.  The middle 80′s will be a common theme tomorrow.  Skies should remain dry.  Thanks for reading our blog and please feel free to submit a comment.  We would love to hear from you.

Near record high temperatures are forecast across parts of the area this afternoon.  The record high in Memphis is 88 degrees but I believe we will fall just shy of that mark.  Strong High pressure off the Atlantic Seaboard is ushering in a stiff Southerly breeze that is pumping warm air into the region from the Gulf of Mexico.  Even with this pattern, I don’t expect any rain today or tonight and really the weekend for that matter.  There may be a few showers just to our West tomorrow.  We’ll keep an eye on it but at this time it seems to pose no major problems.

As the warm front migrates through part of the Mid-South, early light showers and sprinkles popped up for some and cloud cover for even more folks.

No worries however, if you’re looking for Spring-time temps.  Brisk southerly winds return, and by late this afternoon temperatures will climb back to the upper 70s & lower 80s.

Then, dare I type it?  The weekend looks to be dry.  Considering the past two weekends, I’m going to express my relief and excitement and write it again d…r…y!  There’s really no catch.  The temperatures will remain in the 60s at night & 80s in the afternoon.

In the meantime, if you’ve read this in advance please join for his his weekly web chat at 10:00 @ wmctv.com.  He’ll be happy to answer your weather questions live on our website.  Lifelong Memphians…when’s the last time you heard this song?  Click on the musical notes to jog your memory…

Courtesy fm100memphis.com

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The Mid-South will finally begin to dry out this week.  Yes, there is a chance for light rain Monday morning.  Any amounts would be very light and not everyone will get wet.

Now to the good news…Tuesday through next weekend should be dry!  Highs will warm each and every day, with 80 degree weather toward the end of the week as lots of sunshine beams down.  I don’t know about you, but I am really looking forward to this week’s forecast.

Let’s enjoy the quiet weather for a change.

Our system that is moving through as we speak has weakened a great deal.  In fact, the disturbance was in a weakening mode as it approached the Mid-South.  Rain is still falling for many in association with this feature.  Most of the action is plain ‘ole rain right now.  Here is a link to the latest lightning map of the United States.  Notice the heavy weather is West and South of our Action News Five Coverage area.

http://www.intellicast.com/Storm/Severe/Lightning.aspx

While we are not dealing with thunderstorms right now, a few are possible tomorrow as the cold front moves through.  We will certainly keep you updated as new information arrives into the Weather Center.  Have a great rest of your night and thank you for reading our blog.

Sunday looks nasty too with more rain likely. The thunderstorm threat will continue. High temperatures should top out around 70 once again. Cooler air works into the area tomorrow night behind a cold front that will eventually bring an end to the rain.

Monday and Tuesday look chilly. High temperatures in the lower 60s can be expected Monday with middle 60s Tuesday. Overnight lows will be cool, with 40s likely Monday and Tuesday night.

A significant warming trend begins Wednesday and will last through at least Friday. Expect 72 Wednesday, 77 Thursday and perhaps 80 on Friday. Dry skies are forecast each day.

Stay with Action News Five the rest of our weekend as we strive to bring you the most accurate forecast in the Mid-South. Thank you, as always, for choosing our station.

- NWA Meteorologist John Bryant