Still warm well into February

Phew, give yourself a pat on the back for making it through January. The last day was the warmest of the month and of 2024 so far, reaching 61° in Lincoln. Both total precipitation and snowfall were above normal for the month.

It isn’t uncommon to see 60° in January. We’ve done it in 5 of the past 10 years now. What is weird: 4 of those 5 times the warmest temperature of the month was exactly 61°.

But that’s enough about January because February is here! We will get sunsets after 6 p.m. by the middle of the month. Average highs will increase to the mid 40s by the end of the month (it is a leap year).

So far this morning, February has started out quite mild with temperatures in the 30s and 40s early Thursday morning. There’s a bit more cloud cover starting to build in from the southwest, so expect partly cloudy conditions through the morning.

And yes! There are more pleasant days in the forecast after a great one yesterday. Today will end up in the upper 50s despite more clouds. Light winds, too.

Rain chances increase especially Friday night into Saturday. Heavier rain now looks to favor south-central and southwest Nebraska through Sunday, with an isolated rumble of thunder not out of the question. Rain for eastern Nebraska will be especially possible by Saturday evening into Sunday.

Rain amounts have diminished a bit for eastern Nebraska with this latest shift west. Still, anywhere from 0.1″ to 0.5″ will be likely across eastern Nebraska, and over an inch across southern Nebraska. Below is a look at potential rainfall through Saturday night.

Most of the state will be mild through the weekend and next week, and that’s why we see rain with no white stuff this time around.

Meteorologist Jessica Blum 
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