Friday: Decreasing Clouds, 70°F 

Friday Night: Mostly Clear, 49°F 

Saturday: Sunny, 72°F

Saturday Night: Partly Cloudy, 53°F

Sunday: Mostly Clear, 76°F ============================================================================= 

General Discussion: 

High-pressure will give Columbia a break from the 1.25” of rain on Thursday. A mostly sunny sky will be present throughout the forecast period. Temperatures begin to climb into the mid 70s throughout Homecoming Weekend, making it a great weekend to be outside.

-Kauffman, Osborn

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Forecasters: Kauffman, Osborn

Date Issued: 10/02/2026 9:00 AM CDT 

Technical Discussion:

Key Messages:

• Zonal flow at 250mb and a surface high-pressure center will induce stable conditions.
• A lack of 700 and 850-mb moisture will influence a clear sky, allowing for diurnal heating to increase high temperatures throughout the weekend.

Throughout the day Thursday and Thursday evening, a cold front moved through the Missouri region, bringing 1.25” of rain to Columbia. Following the passage of this front, a large area of high pressure residing east of the Rockies and the Central Planes is inducing drier and colder conditions, which the high can be observed from the surface to 500mb. 250-mb flow has begun to enter a zonal pattern, hinting at stable conditions ahead. 700-mb RH values are high (>80%) to begin the day, but beginning Friday 15Z, 700-mb moisture drops substantially (>30%). The decrease of mid and low-level moisture will cause a clearing sky throughout the day. 

Zonal flow at 250mb will persist throughout the forecast period. The lack of 700 and 850-mb moisture will continue a sunny sky for Saturday as Missouri remains under the effect of the aforementioned High-pressure. The lack of cloud cover will allow for stronger diurnal heating which will cause an increase in the Saturday high temperature to 72°F. Partial cloud cover is set to return beginning Sunday 06Z as 850-mb moisture (RH>70%) is advected from the gulf Saturday night due to a surface High-pressure off the East Coast. Increased cloud cover overnight will prohibit temperatures from dropping into the 40s. A clearing sky during Sunday will increase diurnal heating, raising our Sunday high temperature to 76°F.

Future forecasters should monitor cloud cover for any limiting factors for diurnal heating. 

– Kauffman