The coldest air since last April settled into North Texas early Thursday morning. Widespread high 40s were common (even a few upper 30s in the East)! Morning chills quickly give way to the 60s in the afternoon, reaching a brief high in the lower 70s by late afternoon. The sky will be mostly sunny and there won’t be much wind. To sum up, it’s going to be another beautiful fall day!

Unfortunately, the jet stream is not doing us any favors in terms of rain chances. So far, so dry for the month of October. DFW hasn’t recorded any rain for the first 16 days and next week isn’t looking any better either.

As the drought worsens, the risk of grass fires will also be high. Even a small spark could quickly start a grass fire.

The warmer weather is likely to intensify toward the weekend and especially next week, when temperatures will likely be back into the upper 80s.

-NBC5 meteorologist Grant Johnston

Latest forecast:

THURSDAY: Cool in the morning, then mostly sunny and pleasant. Top Speed: 72. Wind: SE 5-10 mph.

TONIGHT: Mostly clear and cool. Low: 53. Wind: SE 5-10 mph.

FRIDAY: Mostly sunny, windy and mild. Low: 53. High: 78. Wind: SE 10-20 mph.

SATURDAY: Partly cloudy, windy and mild. Low: 58. High: 80. Wind: SE 10-20 mph.

SUNDAY: Partly cloudy, windy and mild. Low: 59. High: 80. Wind: SE 10-15 mph.

MONDAY: Partly cloudy and pleasant. Low: 59. High: 83. Wind: SE 10-15 mph.

TUESDAY: Partly cloudy and pleasant. Low: 64. High: 87. Wind: S 10-15 mph.

WEDNESDAY: Partly cloudy and warm. Low: 65. High: 87. Wind: S 10-15 mph.

THURSDAY: Partly cloudy and warm. Low: 65. High: 87. Wind: S 10-15 mph.

FRIDAY: Warm with a mix of clouds and sun. Low: 63. High: 86. Wind: S 10-15 mph.

SATURDAY: Warm with sunshine and a few clouds. Low: 64. High: 86. Wind: S 10-15 mph.