It’s a tale of two forecasts this week. Heat will dominate the start of the week as rain chances fade; however, another cold front on the horizon will eventually send temperatures crashing and usher in more rounds of rain.

Tonight & Tomorrow: While a spotty evening shower or thunderstorm isn’t totally off the table, any development will gradually fizzle with the loss of daytime warming. Expect mostly clear skies early on, followed by increasing clouds later in the night. Monday morning commuters will wake up to a gray sky with lows near 70°. A ridge of high pressure will expand over the region on Monday, working against rain and boosting temperatures simultaneously. Emerging sunshine and a southeast breeze over 10 mph with push thermometers into the upper 80s and possibly to 90° in a few neighborhoods.

Monday’s record high of 90° for Baton Rouge, which has stood since 1963, is in danger. Even if actual temperatures fall short of 90°, it will still feel like it. A muggy feel will drive the heat index, or feels-like temperature, into the lower and middle 90s by peak warming. It takes a week or two for bodies to adjust to hotter temperatures when ramping toward summer, so be sure to drink plenty of water if working outdoors.

Up Next: Tuesday also looks largely dry with highs nearing the 90° mark. Wednesday will be warm too, for that matter, with a high in the upper 80s. That said, a cold front will knock the heat down and deliver much-needed rainfall by the end of the week. Highs appear to drop into the 70s starting on Friday, with 50s returning for the weekend mornings. Guided by the front, a wave of showers and storms will arrive from the north as early as Wednesday afternoon, sliding through the region overnight and into Thursday. Showers will remain possible into Friday, before a final push of rain over the weekend. Rain could impact outdoor events next weekend, so keep in touch with the Storm Station this week as the timing becomes clearer.

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— Meteorologist Malcolm Byron

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