After starting the week with lows below freezing for two days (4/14-15), "we've turned the corner into spring," says State Climatologist Al Dutcher. Soils will be warming across the state and conditions will be conducive to planting.

On Monday lows in western Nebraska dropped to 10 in Alliance and 13 in Kimball with sites across the state reporting temperatures in the teens to mid 20s. Cold temperatures continued Tuesday with lows across the state in the low to mid 20s. (See more.)

The spring warm-up will continue over the next two weeks with significant intermittent opportunities for precipitation in eastern Nebraska, with a total of 2-3 inches expected over the period. 

Eastern Nebraska is expected to see "robust" precipitation this Sunday and Monday, followed by warmer temperatures up through Wednesday, when another significant precipitation event is expected. Western Nebraska is expected to see less rain during this period.

Cooler periods may still occur, but they won't be long-lived, Dutcher said. There are no signals through May of further polar vortexes reaching down into Nebraska.

4/18/14