FIRST ALARM | Chris Bailey shows the potential of the Northern Lights

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) – Our fantastic weather pattern continues across the Commonwealth of Kentucky and looks set to continue for a while. Starting next week it can get pretty cold in mid-October.

Before we get to local weather, let's talk briefly about Hurricane Milton. This storm made landfall near Sarasota, Florida, on Wednesday evening as a Category 3 storm. Not only did this cause destruction from a storm surge and high winds, but it also spawned an incredible number of tornadoes.

Milton is weakening as it moves off the east coast of Florida early this morning and continues to push out of the country.

Back here in Kentucky, today is another great day. Highs will range from the mid-60s to mid-70s east to west. This sets the stage for a clear and cold night with the possibility of patchy frost in some of the coldest valleys in central and eastern Kentucky.

The clear skies this evening can also be a very special treat with the appearance of the Northern Lights. There's a chance it could rival what we saw here in May, and that was a really, really great show.

In fact, the Northern Lights could appear as far away as the Deep South.

This weekend, temperatures will rise to over 70° with strong southwesterly winds before a sharp decline in the jet stream begins late Sunday and early next week. There is a possibility of a closed upper level system in our region shutting down and rotating for most of the next week.

Behind it comes a huge rush of colder than normal air. Highs are in the 50s, lows are regularly in the 30s, with any night with clear skies there is a chance of temperatures getting below freezing.

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