Sunshine to return Tuesday, but we’ll remain below seasonal temperatures

It’s been a pretty gloomy 24 hours for Calgary and parts of southern Alberta after a gorgeous weekend of sunshine and temperatures in the mid- to high 20s.

A ridge of high pressure started to break down late Sunday afternoon, resulting in the development of supercell thunderstorms fuelled by the warm, dry air.

Residents in Calgary’s northwest and northeast quadrants were rocked by just such a storm right around 7 p.m. on Sunday, with strong winds and heavy rain and hail pummelling many neighbourhoods.

The strongest wind recorded at the Calgary International Airport was 93 km/h, while areas south of Cypress Hills and in Claresholm recorded wind speeds of 115 km/h!

Following the storm, a more sustained system packing lots of rain moved into the city around 1 a.m. Monday that brought showers throughout the day.

This system put Calgary and the surrounding areas under a rainfall warning as rapid amounts totalling 50 to 80 millimetres are possible.

We will have a clearer picture of just how much rain Calgary received on Tuesday when this system has fully pushed out.

There could be some scattered showers Tuesday morning, but the rest of the day is shaping up to be clear and sunny, though below seasonal with a high of 18 C.

Still much warmer than the measly 13 C the city got to Monday.

Wednesday is shaping up to be stable as well, thanks to some high pressure moving in, but it won’t stick around for long.

By Thursday, a deep upper trough develops over Alberta, with several models in agreement that rain and thunderstorms will be possible in the late afternoon into the evening.

That trend carries on into the weekend as well, with clouds, rain and more chances for thunderstorms.