Everything is in the forecast

March is usually the peak season for weather insanity, and this year is no different. Just about every type of weather is possible during the next few days, including: unseasonable warmth, rain, thunderstorms, tornadoes, high winds, hail, snow, sleet, freezing rain, hard freeze, and a daylight-saving time change.

After a sunny day in the 70s, this evening could bring thunderstorms. As of this writing, Cape Girardeau is in the "Marginal Risk" zone for severe thunderstorms, but areas immediately to the southeast are in the higher "Slight Risk" zone. The greatest threat is high winds, although hail and tornadoes can't be completely ruled out.

Then Old Man Winter will make a rare appearance. Temperatures on Friday will only reach into the 40s, and then by Saturday the temperature will hover around freezing. And that's when the precipitation will arrive, probably falling as snow, but we could also see sleet, freezing rain, and plain old rain.

Since the bulk of the snow will be coming during warmer daylight hours, and since the ground is so ridiculously warm, it will be hard for the snow to accumulate. So this may be a situation where we see lots of big, fat, wet snowflakes falling from the sky, but not much actually sticks to the ground.

With that said, the national Weather Prediction Center does show that we have a 10% chance of receiving at least 4 inches. That's... something.

The Plume Viewer tool, which plots various computer model runs, is also fairly bullish on snowfall accumulation. The average among the latest model runs is 2.9 inches at Cape Girardeau. Some models actually show 6+ inches, although several others show us getting nothing at all.

Saturday night, the mercury should plummet into the low 20s -- and possibly lower depending on how much snowcover we get, if any. This hard freeze will make a mockery of all of the trees and flowers that have budded early this year.

Cold weather will stick around for next week, with lows below freezing at least through Tuesday night. We also have chances of rain and/or snow Monday and Wednesday, although these systems are weak and will likely come during daylight hours, keeping the snow to a minimum.

The 8-14 Day Outlook paints the region in above-average temperatures again, so this may be the last gasp of Old Man Winter. Then we can go back to our regularly scheduled warmth... and tornadoes.