Issued: 8am on Thursday, March 26th 2026
Technical Forecast Discussion
Key Messages:
- Storms could return early Friday morning, but with a weakening low-level jet, these storms may decay quite quickly as they arrive into southeastern Ohio.
- Temperatures will continue to fluctuate into next week as cold air is advected down from Canada Friday, dropping us back down into the upper-40s before we steadily warm by Sunday.
Short-Term Forecast (Thursday 03/26/2026 through Saturday 03/28/2026):
A cold front alongside a strengthening low will push southeastward throughout the day today. A small cluster of moisture will allow for some precipitation to occur in the morning hours before lunchtime but won’t produce too much precipitation at the time. Primarily zonal flow can be seen today and tomorrow, though warm, southerly flow will allow some instability to develop. The primary threat for southeastern Ohio seems to be severe wind gusts and hail, though an isolated tornado could be a possibility as well. A relatively strong low-level jet may initially provide some instability into the nighttime hours, but this could soon decay overnight, significantly decreasing any form of instability in the area. By sunrise Friday, a significant amount of the rain should have exited the region. We can then expect high-pressure to rapidly fill in right after this cold front and subsequent low moves over the state, bringing back more cold air to close out the week. Strong cold air advection will crawl down from Canada, allowing these temperatures will hover around the upper-40s Friday and Saturday. Thankfully, this high will be quite strong and will allow plenty of the clouds to dissipate early Saturday morning.
Long-Term Forecast (Sunday 03/29/2026 through Wednesday 04/01/2026):
High-pressure will continue into Sunday and early next week, though another disturbance will make its way eastward, bringing back the chance for rain Monday evening into much of next week. This low will bring with it warmer temperatures once more, especially as a ridge develops above us by then. As such, clouds will return once more come Sunday, obscuring much of the sun we saw on Saturday. The rain we may see next week could bring a rumble of thunder or two as some instability arises by then. Thankfully, these warmer temperatures look like they may be staying for a while as this upper-level ridge remains over the state, continuously supplying warm air into the region.
