CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – Clouds will continue to gather across the state through Thursday, but that’s likely the worst we’ll see from a dissipating Hurricane Francine.

The clear skies will linger for a while before the clouds come

Tonight will be mostly clear to completely clear, leading to a steady drop in temperatures, eventually climbing back into the upper 50s to lower 60s by sunrise on Thursday.

Thursday will see plenty of sunshine again and will continue to do so for most of the day. Later in the afternoon and evening, high clouds will roll in from the south, filtering out some of the sunshine. The slow warming trend of the week will continue into Thursday, with the warmest temperatures of the week so far in the mid to upper 80s for most.

Clouds will continue to build into Thursday evening and will likely thicken a bit, bringing temperatures down to the low to mid 60s but staying dry.

Francine sometimes brings a grayer end to the week

The remnants of Hurricane Francine will continue northward between now and the weekend, roughly following the Mississippi River. This system will likely stall out near the southeast Missouri/southern Illinois/western Kentucky area, eventually weakening and generally dissipating. This will limit its impact after about Saturday.

For us here in eastern Iowa, the biggest impact from Francine will come in the form of lingering cloud cover and a slightly different feel to the air heading into the weekend. Temperatures will be limited with less sunshine, likely only in the upper 70s to low 80s during the day. That said, overnight lows will continue to climb into the low to mid 60s. This is due to an influx of moisture, bringing dew points high enough to bring some muggy conditions Saturday through Sunday.

If you were hoping for some rainfall, that seems pretty unlikely. While we can’t rule it out completely, it doesn’t seem very likely this far north. Further south along the path, several inches of rain are possible down to the Memphis area, with lighter amounts in parts of Missouri and Illinois.

Your first warning: next week slightly more active and slightly warmer

We will see more and more sunshine return to our skies by the end of Sunday for the first part of the work and school week. Temperatures will begin another modest warming trend as a result, rising from the low 80s for most on Sunday to the mid 80s by midweek.

By this time, our weather pattern could become a bit more active and a bit wetter. At least one storm system will give us a chance for some showers and storms, although the exact timing is still somewhat uncertain. Wednesday and Thursday have the best chances here, but watch for additional updates as we get closer to next week.

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