It looks like we are entering an extended period of drier and warmer conditions. A ridge of high pressure will build in after a few Wednesday night snow showers. There will be enough residual moisture around for a couple of days to bring variable amounts of cloudiness across the region before clearing out over the weekend. Temperatures will also gradually rise from the mid-40s Thursday into the 50s by the weekend.

A daughter asked her father to help her completing her science research project. As all good dads do when their kids want help with their homework, he dropped everything, prepared to show his little girl that dad knows everything, and then called me for the answer: “What is it about the Sierra that makes predicting weather so challenging? Any advice on what she needs to look up?”

I really didn’t want to spoil the fun of father and daughter doing a joint research project together and just tell them the answer, so I considered just directing them to a couple of good meteorology websites. But then I caved, and just gave them the answer. I’ll share it with you tomorrow.