Rain could dampen Phoenix on Friday. That's uncommon for Valentine's Day, records show
The National Weather Service forecasts showers on Friday, with a 70% chance of precipitation. Although it won't be a washout — nothing on the order of "Singin' in the Rain" — with 0.1 of an inch of rain possible, it would be one of the few Valentine's Days on record with rain in Phoenix.
"The best chance for rain this week will be on Friday," said Katherine Berislavich, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service Phoenix. "It's going to be all across the Southwest, with better chances north of our area, but Phoenix has a pretty good chance too."
Flagstaff is likely to see a white Valentine's Day, with snow showers starting Thursday and 1 to 2 inches possible on Friday.
This Valentine's Day could join the ranks of some love day weather standouts over the last century, when temperatures were hotter than a whirlwind romance or chillier than usual, reminding us that love can sometimes leave you out in the cold.
This year's Valentine's Day won't be a scorcher, but temperatures have heated up in previous years.
The high temperature on Friday will be 69 degrees, just shy of the normal high temperature of 70 degrees for Feb. 14. Cupid summoned a winter heatwave with record highs of 85 degrees in 2014, 1957 and 1947.
The coolest high temperature was 52 degrees in both 1978 and 1942.
Valentine's Day isn't always steamy in Phoenix. This year's low temperature will be around 49 degrees, but it's been even colder in other years.
The record-low temperature was 28 degrees in 1966, bringing frosty feelings to America's hottest city.
While the average low on Valentine's Day is 49 degrees, the warmest low was 58 degrees in 1987.
Raindrops could outnumber tears this Valentine's Day. A low-pressure system brings a 70% chance of rain on Friday, making this year's holiday one of the few on record with rain.
There have been traces or more of rain on 24 of the last 129 Valentine's Days. The rainiest Valentine's Day was in 1931 when 0.92 inches of rain fell.
Rain chances will fall to 50% by Friday night, with less than 0.1 of an inch of rain possible.
This year likely won't break the record for most rainfall on Valentine's Day, but it will bring much-needed moisture to the Valley after months of drought.
Hayleigh Evans writes about extreme weather and related topics for The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. Email her with story tips at hayleigh.evans@arizonarepublic.com.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: A storm may bring rain to Phoenix on Valentine's Day, but not a lot
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