Powerful cold front to spark severe thunderstorms across the Plains this weekend

In the wake of damaging thunderstorms that tracked across the Dakotas this past Thursday, conditions have been relatively quiet across the Plains to end the week. The tranquil conditions will abruptly come to an end however, as a powerful cold front will set the stage for explosive thunderstorm development.

The generally quiet conditions will continue across the northern Plains during the day on Saturday as an area of high pressure will hang on for one more day.

However, farther south, episodes of rain and thunderstorms are expected across the south-central Plains on Saturday into Saturday night as a storm system slides eastward. While some thunderstorms may be on the strong, perhaps even severe end of the spectrum across much of Oklahoma and in northern Texas, the rain will largely be beneficial in mitigating dry conditions across the region.

The storms that fire across the southern Plains will continue to roll eastward into areas that were just inundated with heavy rain from former Hurricane Laura into Saturday evening. On top of the threat for damaging wind gusts and frequent lightning strikes, there will be a heightened risk for flooding in places like Little Rock and Jonesboro, Ark., as storms roll through.

These storms can be especially dangerous, because a majority of the activity could occur after sunset on Saturday.

Another threat for severe weather will be introduced across the Plains into the latter half of the weekend as a powerful cold front marches eastward out of the Rocky Mountains.

The approaching cold front will act to funnel a hot, moist and unstable air mass northward during the day on Sunday. While this corridor of juicy air will be relatively narrow, this area will be the focal point for rapid thunderstorm development.

As the atmosphere continues to destabilize into the afternoon hours on Sunday, thunderstorm initiation is expected across the central Dakotas southward into Nebraska, and possibly reaching into Kansas.

Thunderstorms will likely fire along a north-to-south line during the afternoon, firing up in places like Pierre, S.D., and Valentine, Neb., before trekking eastward.

Motorists traveling along interstates 80 and 90 will want to pay close attention to the sky during the afternoon hours for the threat of dangerous thunderstorm activity.

At their peak intensity, large hail, damaging wind gusts and even an isolated tornado will be possible from the thunderstorm activity late Sunday afternoon.

Farther north across North Dakota, rain and thunderstorms are expected to occur during the same time frame, but the atmosphere will likely be lacking the instability required for storms to turn severe.

Across the expected severe weather corridor, the duration of impactful weather will likely be fairly short-lived, as the cold front will be set to quickly swoop in behind the thunderstorms.

A stark contrast in temperatures will quickly filter in behind the advancing cold front across the northern Plains Sunday night, with many locales across the Dakotas and western Nebraska expected to fall into the 40s before dawn on Monday.

The northern Plains can expect a break in the thunderstorm activity during the day on Monday as an area of high pressure briefly builds in, however, the central and southern Plains will be next in line as another storm system dives southward.