Shorts for the holiday, parkas after: Why KC might miss out on a Christmas record
Just wait a minute, Kansas City. Those record-breaking temperatures might not be tucked under your Christmas tree this year, but don’t worry, they could still show up a day later than expected, according to the National Weather Service.
After that, get ready for a strong cold front that could bring a significant 30-degree drop in high temperatures from one day to the next.
The metro will still get its holiday heatwave, but the weather service isn’t as confident it will be record-setting on Christmas Day due to cloud cover.
Temperatures are expected to climb to around 62 degrees on Tuesday, which is well above Kansas City’s average of 40 degrees for this time of year.
“It only gets warmer on Wednesday and Thursday, but model trends have raised some concerns about just how high temperatures will go for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day,” the weather service said.
Widespread cloudiness is expected for a large chunk of those two days, the weather service said.
While the weather pattern favors unseasonably warm weather, the probability of temperatures exceeding 70 degrees has decreased sharply over the last 24 hours for areas north of Interstate 70. It is now near zero north of U.S. 36 across northern Missouri, the weather service said.
The metro’s probability of seeing temperatures of 70 degrees or higher dropped from 77% on Monday to 39% on Tuesday.
Temperatures are now expected to be in the mid- to upper 60s. The record high temperatures are 72 degrees on Christmas Eve (2021) and 67 degrees on Christmas Day (1922).
Although the unseasonably warm weather is expected to continue into the weekend, forecast models are trending warmer for Friday and Saturday, with temperatures in the 60s. Cloud cover could be considerably less prevalent on Friday than on Christmas Day.
“So Friday could end up being the warmest day of the period now, with record highs on this day in jeopardy!” the weather service said. The record for that date is 66 degrees, set in 2008.
Cold front to bring ‘rude awakening’
Temperatures are then expected to tumble as a cold front moves through the area late Saturday and overnight. It is also expected to be windy as the front passes.
“This will be a very rude awakening temperature-wise, with a 30+ degree drop in highs possible from Saturday to Sunday,” the weather service said. Temperatures on Sunday will be in the mid-30s.
It is expected to take a few days for the region to recover, so much cooler weather will linger through at least early next week, the weather service said.
Forecast models are beginning to hint that a similar type of weather system could affect the area around New Year’s Day as well, the weather service said.
