Indian Summer while Alaska Freezes and Ida Backs Up the Pattern

Indian Summer is here and making for amazing conditions after the cold October we have had.  Alaska is paying the cost for our warm air as they are seeing colder weather up there.  Tropical Storm Ida is also backing up the weather pattern over the lower 48 allowing us to stay in this nice high pressure for a couple more days.

Clear skies encompass the state today allowing for all the sun's rays to warm up the ground.  It is even more enjoyable after the cold October we have had.  The center of the surface high pressure is sitting over central and northern Wisconsin and Minnesota is on the back side of the high and we have light southerly winds statewide.  Tropical Storm Ida is moving up the eastern seaboard and keeping the surface high pressure over us as the pattern backs up over the lower 48.

It is common this time of year to flip flop conditions with Alaska, when they are cold, we are warm and when we are warm, they are cold.  This pattern is holding true today.  Winter has its grip on Alaska today with snow and temperatures below zero in the interior and north slope areas.  We currently have a strong Aleutian Low and a general west to east flow across the lower 48 states.  Any cold air that comes down from the north is displaced over the Gulf of Alaska and modified by the northern Pacific Ocean before it comes onshore  and comes across the northern US and southern and central Canada.   The current pattern will probably hold through most of the next week and a half to two weeks.

There are still short waves in the flow that will give us chances for precipitation.  There is a weak system across the western Dakotas that will move in and bring mostly clouds to the southern part of the state tomorrow and a chance for light showers to the northern part of the state tomorrow and Thursday.  An stronger wave off the Pacific Northwest will dive to the southwest US midweek and part of the energy will move in by Friday giving the state a chance for rain, something to keep an eye to the sky for with the last week of outdoor high school football in the state.  The upper level trough will lift out of the southwest early next week and appears it may bring the next chance of precipitation to the state depending on the upcoming track.