"The wedge" puts clouds, cooler air in our region through Tuesday

Tuesday is perfect for a nap. Cool, cloudy and a few showers west of the Parkway

ROANOKE, Va. – If you need an excuse for a nap Tuesday, the weather will provide. We expect dense cloud cover, along with temperatures about 15-20° cooler than Monday. 

This is all thanks to a pattern we know very well around here, called the wedge (aka. Cold Air Damming).

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High pressure to our north and low pressure offshore both create a wind out of the northeast. That northeast wind essentially banks up against the mountains and creates this dome of clouds and cool air.

Therefore, what you see Tuesday morning is basically what you get Tuesday afternoon. Temperatures won't move much, meaning we're rocking the long sleeves and/or light jacket throughout the day. 

Rising air west of the Parkway will help create a few batches of light rain throughout the day. It won't be a drought-busting rain, but it will be something nonetheless.

We slowly break out of this wedge by Thursday, with a partly cloudy sky by the afternoon. We'll also begin to warm by a few degrees each afternoon ahead of our next cold front.

This front will produce a snowstorm in the Northern Plains, but it won't mean much for us. Any showers will be scattered and west of the Parkway Saturday night into Sunday morning.

Most of Saturday will be dry, which is good news for Tech fans. This does, unfortunately, mean that the drought will continue. 


About the Author:

Meteorologist Chris Michaels is an American Meteorological Society (AMS) Certified Broadcaster, forecasting weather conditions in southwest Virginia on WSLS 10 News from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. weekdays on Virginia Today.