After a chilly start with lingering clouds for Acadiana's Friday, look for full sunshine to return to the area to warm our hearts for Valentine's afternoon.
Temperatures will start out most mostly in the mid-upper 30s Friday, but could be closer to the freezing/frost zone up toward Alexandria provided the clouds thin out enough by daybreak.
There will be a wind chill Friday morning to range from the upper 20s north to lower 30s south so the heavier jackets and sweaters are recommended for Friday morning.
Look for highs Friday afternoon for most of Acadiana with sunshine to top out in the mid-upper 50s.
Temperatures look to chill nicely Friday night into Saturday morning with readings closer to the low-mid 30s with frost a definitive possibility anywhere in the Acadiana area.
Saturday will start out mostly sunny and become milder with highs in the mid-60s, but high clouds are expected to increase late in the day ahead of a weak disturbance that will likely bring some rain shower activity to the area overnight.
Lingering clouds, the chance of showers, primarily in the morning, is in the forecast Sunday with highs likely in the mid-upper 60s.
Moving into next week, Acadiana will continue to be plagued by an active sub-tropical jet stream overhead which will keep clouds and the chance of showers in the forecast for much of the week.
Look for spring-like temperatures in the mid-upper 70s early next week followed by a cool front late Tuesday that will usher in cooler air (50s down to 40s) but with periods of rain likely Wednesday into Thursday.
With any luck, drier, sunny and seasonably cool weather will return and kick off the start of our big Mardi Gras period next weekend, but no forecast yet on whether the weather will hold through Mardi Gras.
See the KATC 10 Day Forecast for the latest and some of the parade forecasts that start Friday!
Climate notes: The trees are not only budding early across all of Acadiana and Louisiana but much of the southeast to date. The leaf anomaly from the National Phenology Network indicates that spring budding and leaves are about 15-20 days ahead of would be considered normal for the time of the year.
Almanac Note: A little winter-like feel lately has no comparison with the weather 121 years ago on this date, when Lafayette hit its all-time record low temperature for any winter month of 6 degrees F!
