It felt much better Thursday across Central and Eastern Kentucky as “milder” air relatively speaking worked back into the region. A breezy southwest wind ahead of a clipper system diving through the Great Lakes helped push temperatures back into the low 30s by daybreak with most locations surging into the the low to mid-40s thanks to some sunshine and the gusty, mild winds. The more moderate air should continue to help with melting off the lingering snowpack across the Bluegrass with seasonable temperatures on the way as we finish out the week. Friday is shaping up to be one of our better days in quite some time as high pressure briefly takes control of our weather. We should enjoy plenty of sunshine early before some high clouds build in ahead of our next storm system. Temperatures will actually be slightly above average for mid-January, which has been a rarity of late thanks to a south wind pushing milder air in. Afternoon highs look to reach the mid to upper-40s across the board so enjoy the break from the active and cold weather pattern we’ve seen so far in 2025 with more unsettled conditions returning into the weekend. An Arctic cold front will make a run for the Ohio Valley this weekend and with plenty of moisture streaming in from the south, we are set up for kind of a messy weekend of weather. With temperatures expected to be in the upper 30s and low 40s expect a chilly rain on Saturday so you’ll need to keep the umbrella handy if you plan to be out. The Arctic air will pour in just behind the front and should catch up to the lingering moisture so a change to a rain/snow mix and eventually some light snow will happen Saturday evening and into Sunday morning. Eastern and Southeastern Kentucky have the best chance to see some light accumulations but at this point it doesn’t look to be a major deal, especially considering some of the events we’ve already seen this month. Once again the big story will be yet another round of Arctic cold for the commonwealth beginning Sunday with the core of it arriving just in time for the King holiday on Monday. Afternoon highs look to be in the mid-20s to close out the weekend before the bitterly cold air settles in. MLK Day will start out frigid with early morning lows in the single digits. Don’t expect much recovery through the day as afternoon highs struggle to reach the mid-teens! There will be a bit of wind around so our “feel-like” temps will be below zero at times. This will be the coldest air we’ve seen so far this year as temperatures will get very cold without the help of any snowpack on the ground, unlike what we’ve seen lately. Expect more of the same Tuesday before we slowly relax the bitter cold out of the region. Looking down the road some of the data is hinting at another potential winter weather event at the end of next week so we’ll keep an eye on that. ABC 36 HOUR FORECAST THURSDAY NIGHT: Scattered clouds, breezy and cold. Lows in the mid-20s. FRIDAY: Mostly sunny and breezy, feeling better. Highs in the mid to upper-40s. FRIDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy with rain moving in. Lows in the upper-30s. Categories: Featured, Local Weather Headlines, Storm Team Weather Blog, Weather, Weather Forecast Tags: ABC 36 Hour Forecast, Chief Meteorologist TG Shuck, January 2025, Kentucky weather, Lexington, milder temperatures, MLK Day, rain showers, weather forecast, Weather Video, weekend rain and snow, Weekend Weather Forecast, Winter Weather