Warmer weather forecast, but not much warmer

by CHERYL SCHWEIZER
Staff Writer | February 23, 2018 2:00 AM

MOSES LAKE — Comparatively speaking, it’s been pretty warm in Moses Lake and the Columbia Basin this week.

“It’s only been in the low teens in Moses Lake the last few days. You’re the warm spot,” said Stephen Bodnar, meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Spokane. The darn cold air that moved into the region out of the north mixed with enough precipitation to mean snow in some places. In those locations temperatures dropped into single digits or even below zero, Bodnar said.

While it might not have been as cold here, it’s still been cold. And while it’s going to warm up, it’s not going to warm up that much.

At least it won’t be in the low teens – the low for Friday night is forecast for 26 degrees. Lows next week are anticipated to be in the mid-20s. But at least over the weekend it’s supposed to be windy.

Winds are projected to start picking up Saturday afternoon. By Sunday winds could be blowing 15 to 25 miles per hour, with gusts of 30 to 40 miles per hour. “Or even stronger. There’s some uncertainty on that part.”

The high winds could push temperatures up, maybe hitting the 50-degree mark. However “it won’t be a comfortable 50 (degrees),” Bodnar said.

And don’t expect it to get above 50 degrees for at least a week, maybe two. “The (weather) pattern is going to be pretty cool and the precipitation chances are going to be pretty high.” The general storm track is coming from the north-northwest, Bodnar said, although “it’s not going to be nearly as cold.” The forecast high for Tuesday is 45 degrees, and “48 is the normal for right now.”

Snow could come as early as Saturday night, although it should get warm enough Sunday to melt any snow that falls.

There’s less chance of snow in the Moses Lake-Grant County area, thanks to a geographical feature known in grade school science as the rain shadow. As the clouds move from west to east off the Pacific Ocean, they bump up against the Cascades, dropping some of their rain (or snow) to get over the top. Once across the mountains it’s not necessary to drop precipitation until they get to the mountains in north Idaho. Bodnar said the effect of rain shadow is visible on the drive across the state – the vegetation changes from trees to sagebrush. “Cheney is where the tree line starts to come back.”

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at [email protected].