It wasn’t the sunniest Saturday, but temps were pretty mild over southern New Mexico. Places like Socorro, T or C, and Alamogordo all climbed into the upper 60s to near 70°! Conditions were just cloudy enough for us in Albuquerque to keep a solid 10°+ below that. Winds are already beginning to increase this evening over wester NM and into Arizona, ahead of a powerful storm impacting southern California. We’re up next with more extreme wind gusts, rain and snow showers, and plunging temperatures by Sunday afternoon. So make sure all loose items are tucked away by then!

Overnight tonight, we’ll clear out ahead of the storm and even get some early morning sunshine before the clouds and moisture arrive late morning. Winter weather advisories are in effect for all all the northern mountains with a quick burst of moderate snow by lunchtime. Several inches are likely for the mountains only. The main feature with this storm will once again be the potentially damaging wind gusts in excess of 65-70 mph. Temps will crash from west to east with the cold front, similarly to Wednesday. Thankfully, the storm exits the state rather quickly as skies clear out late Sunday.

Monday will be a calm and beautiful day statewide. Enjoy it, since we’ll see more stronger wind gusts beginning Tuesday with our active winter pattern continuing into March.