Warm westerly flow over the southern Rockies drove temperatures up early Wednesday. As of 9 a.m., Calgary was unofficially the hot spot in Alberta reaching 13.9 C, which is warmer than the average daytime high and 15-degrees warmer than the average low which is usually met just before sunrise. By 7 a.m., many communities west of Calgary were at least a few degrees warmer than communities east of Calgary. Wind gusts of 50 to 70 km/h were observed in the southwest corner of the province while Calgary recorded wind speeds close to 40 km/h. This warmth will be short-lived. An Alberta clipper is expected to track from northwestern Alberta toward the southeastern Prairies over the next 24 to 36-hours. Rain and mixed precipitation was observed along the leading edge of that low-pressure system Wednesday morning with more rain expected across northern and central Alberta and Saskatchewan throughout the day. A yellow-level wind warning was issued around the Capital region Wednesday morning - including the City of Edmonton and along most of the Yellowhead Highway in Alberta. Environment and Climate Change Canada is anticipating wind gusts up to 90 km/h in these warned areas. “Strong winds will develop today, with westerly winds gusts developing near noon in the Slave Lake and Swan Hills areas. These winds will progress to the southeast and reach the Lloydminster area by early evening,” the agency said. Wind gusts will likely reach 40 to 60 km/h in Calgary but shift from the west to come out of the northwest and north – introducing colder air to the region. Strong wind along the northern edge of the Rockies will heighten instability and could lead to some funnel cloud development. Rainfall totals will be highly variable, mixed precipitation is likely, thunderstorms are possible, and mixed precipitation is likely in higher elevations. Thursday will see colder temperatures compared to today and that drop could occur quite quickly. Once again this phase will be short-lived with a ridge of high pressure expected to follow that fast-moving Alberta clipper, and daytime highs will rise by around 10-degrees from Thursday to Friday. There will be one more fast change in the weather pattern at the end of the weekend. Sunday is expected to shape up a lot like tomorrow before temperatures settle around seasonal for most of next week.
