Cloudy today, rain Friday, nicer Saturday

Cloudy and cool weather today will follow Wednesday’s rainfall, but forecasters are predicting more rain on Friday and again later on Sunday. It appears that Saturday should bring relatively nice autumn weather with partly sunny skies and highs in the lower 50s. For today, patchy fog is possible this morning to be followed by cloudy skies and highs in the middle 50s with little wind. The National Weather Service said that light rain could begin to fall later tonight, but the next storm is more likely to pick up in intensity after 11 a.m. Friday. As Friday’s rain storm winds down overnight, the region should see a break in the wet weather Saturday and through most of Sunday morning. Then Sunday afternoon brings an increasing chance of rain, but the chance is only pegged at 30 percent. Rain is likely Sunday along with some cooling in the upper atmosphere as the upper-elevation winds shift to a more northwesterly direction, bringing a likelihood of snow in the mountains Sunday night and Monday morning. The parade of Pacific frontal systems may resume Wednesday or next Thursday, forecasters said. Computer models are suggesting that cooler air from the Gulf of Alaska may get caught up in the storm track next week, which could lower snow levels in the mountains. At 7 a.m., it was 43 at Spokane International Airport, 47 in downtown, 50 in Sandpoint and 45 in Coeur d’Alene, Pullman and Deer Park. Spokane airport had 0.07 inches of rain on Friday.