Forecast: Chilly sunshine then a cold rain

Rain early Sunday may start as snow or mix

* Winter Weather Advisory far N&W late tonight/early Sun. (map) *

EXPRESS FORECAST

Today: Partly to mostly sunny. 39-44. | Tonight: Increasing clouds, chance of snow or mix towards morning. 29-33. | Tomorrow: Mix to rain. 37-42. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail

FORECAST IN DETAIL

We've entered the kind of pattern snow lovers detest. It's generally cold, except as soon as precipitation threatens, it warms up just enough to result in mostly rain. That's the scenario we've got for tomorrow. And the milder air will stick around long enough to give us rain when the next storm system approaches late Tuesday. After that, it's back to cold and dry again.

Today (Saturday): After a very cold start to the day (upper teens and 20s), temperatures will gradually moderate with a good deal of morning sunshine. Though some high clouds may stream during the afternoon, afternoon temps should make it up to around 40, or even a little warmer. Winds will generally be light. Confidence: High

Tonight: Clouds lower and thicken overnight as low pressure approaches from the south. Snow or a mix of rain, sleet and snow may (40% chance) develop between 4 a.m. and sunrise with the best chance of precipitation south of town. Any snow/sleet accumulation should be less than 1". If you're out early enough in the morning, you may encounter a few slick spots as the ground will be fairly cold after the recent cold snap. Lows range from the upper 20s in the colder suburbs to near 32 or 33 downtown. Confidence: Medium

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Tomorrow (Sunday): Mixed precipitation should fairly rapidly turnover to rain from southeast to northwest as a relatively mild wind from the south blows in. Temperatures will slowly but surely rise through the 30s and possibly into the low 40s. Rainfall amounts should generally be around 0.5" Confidence: Medium

Tomorrow Night: Rain ends during the early evening, followed by gradual clearing. Lows should range from the low 30s in the colder suburbs to the mid-30s downtown. A major re-freeze is not anticipated as little cold air will follow in the wake of this storm. Confidence: Medium

A LOOK AHEAD

Before the next blast of cold air arrives, Monday looks to be a pretty nice day as weak high pressure pays a short visit. We should have a mix of sun and clouds, and high temperatures reaching into the low-to-mid 50s. Partly cloudy overnight and not super cold, with lows in the mid-30s (in the colder suburbs) to the low 40s. Confidence: Medium

The next blast of cold air arrives late Tuesday but we'll have one more day of mild temperatures out ahead of it. Under variably clouds skies, high should be near 50. As the front passes, there's a 30% chance of showers, mainly in the afternoon.Confidence: Medium