SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH (ABC4) – Happy Thursday, Utah! Following a weak cold front, our temperatures are a bit chilly this morning and will be below average when it comes to our highs.

The northern half of the state will be reaching the 20s and 30s depending on elevation, while the southern half of the state sees a mix of 30s and 40s. Overall, temperatures will run between five to ten degrees below average with the help of our northerly flow. The hot spot will be St. George, which will hit the low 50s, and still comes in about five degrees below seasonal norms in that area.

The downslope winds have relaxed following a wind advisory in Castle Country and the Uinta Basin overnight. Blustery canyon winds also impacted portions of Washington County after the front swept through Southern Utah overnight. These winds will actually help air quality in Eastern Utah and clear some of the unhealthy air with air quality forecast to hit moderate in Uintah and Duchesne counties.

A ridge of high pressure starts to build today, and with a slight shift of the ridge to the east tomorrow, we welcome back some southerly flow and that will help warm temperatures to close the work week with some mostly sunny skies. This area of high pressure also means haze will build and a slight decline in air quality with Davis, Cache, Utah and Salt Lake County forecast to hit moderate air for today. 

A splitting system over the weekend which initially looked like it could bring moisture to Utah is now trending drier. The bulk of this system will miss us meaning skies stay mostly dry. It will be close enough though to get more clouds and increased winds. Temperatures on Saturday will be similar to Friday and will come down slightly on Sunday.

We stay quiet for the next several days, but forecast models are locking in on another potential storm for Valentine’s Day into Wednesday of next week. We are hoping Mother Nature shows us some love with additional snow for the state. Stay tuned! 

Bottom Line? A chilly Thursday with below-average temperatures and a northerly flow, but we warm up for the close of the work week.