Cooler, rainy at times through Sunday; weather improves for Memorial Day

We can promise that one of your holiday weekend days will be pleasant!

Memorial Day weekend planner (Copyright 2021 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

ROANOKE, Va. – While I’m sure many of you were hoping for warmth and sunshine for all three days of Memorial Day weekend, Mother Nature has other plans!

I can promise you that the weather will be much better by the actual holiday on Monday, but we have a couple of unpleasant days to get through first.

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Let’s start with today’s shower chances. They look lowest in the morning, before steadily increasing through midday and into the afternoon.

Chances peak at about 60-percent from 3 to 6 p.m., then fall to around 40-percent for the evening and overnight.

Today's hourly chance of rain (Copyright 2021 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

Temperatures will be cooler today, which helps keep us stable and prevents severe weather from developing.

Part of the reason for the cool-down is a wedge of high pressure up north. The wedge will be even more pronounced as we head into Sunday.

What the wedge means for this weekend (Copyright 2021 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

We’re feeling more like November by tomorrow. I’ve crunched the numbers and we’ll actually be within range of record “cool highs” on Sunday.

Notable late May cool snaps occurred in 1971 and 1992. It appears Roanoke, Lynchburg and Covington have the best chance at new records.

Record "cool highs" in range on Sunday (Copyright 2021 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

Don’t be surprised if there are a few more showers around on Sunday, but the chances do look a little lower than today.

The wedge is expected to loosen its grip on us by the holiday on Monday. The forecast looks pretty nice for Memorial Day, actually!

We’re forecasting plenty of sunshine, along with highs in the 70s, as you’re remembering those who gave their lives for our safety.

Memorial Day planner (Copyright 2021 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

It appears highs will trend back into the low 80s as we’re flipping the calendar to June this week.

Wednesday through Friday could feature some elevated chances for showers and storms. Stay tuned for updates!