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Ups and downs in the temperature department for the holiday week

Mild 50s, cool 40s and cold 30s all possible for highs through Christmas

5 day temperature trend (Copyright 2020 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

ROANOKE, Va. – Happy Monday and welcome to the first day of winter! While the new season officially begins at 5:02 a.m., we actually expect a relatively warm day overall.

Look for a swift recovery from morning temperatures in the 30s as many of you rise to the low to mid-50s by afternoon. We’ll have partly to mostly cloudy skies overhead and a southwest breeze.

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Monday planner (Copyright 2020 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

A quick-moving clipper system pushes through the area tonight. It will spark some precipitation, mainly rain showers for most of us. The west-facing slopes could pile up some snow overnight and Tuesday morning.

Will I see snow tonight? (Copyright 2020 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

The front will also cause the wind to pick up tonight and Tuesday. Look for gusts up to 35 mph tomorrow.

We see a dip to seasonable temperature levels for Tuesday and Wednesday, along with plenty of sunshine.

The most impactful weather of the week will come Christmas Eve and Day. First, look for a front to approach from the west and soak us as Santa is making his yearly trip to southwest and central Virginia.

What we're tracking on Christmas Eve (Copyright 2020 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

As cold air rushes in behind this front, there’s a chance we’ll see a transition to snow overnight. Despite the flakes flying, I doubt we’ll see meaningful accumulation outside of the mountains. It probably will not be enough to call it a white Christmas for most of our area.

What we're tracking Christmas Eve into Christmas Day (Copyright 2020 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

I think the biggest thing you’ll notice is the big change in temperatures by the holiday on Friday. It could be a 20 to 25-degree drop in highs!

Holiday cold blast (Copyright 2020 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

We expect quiet and chilly weather over the weekend.