Upwards of a half-inch of rain fell Thursday bringing only slight relief to a terribly dry state.

It’s been over a week since a decent rain has fallen and even when it did, it was rather selective. Much of central Indiana is still quite dry. Dating back to mid-August entering the day we’ve had less that 2″ (1.69″) of rainfall for the city of Indianapolis while many outlying areas have had much less.

We needed this rain and could use more. Through 4:30 pm most areas have had one-third to as much as a half-inch of rain. This rain arrives when the Drought Center update issued today shows that now 92% of the state of Indiana is in ‘Moderate Drought’ conditions.

Rain will end rather abruptly from west to east this evening as a cold front passes. Clearing and more seasonal air arrives behind the front overnight. Fog may thicken up late night with lows into the low/mid 50s by sunrise. Two cold fronts are coming. Behind the first, a beautiful Friday awaits. Mostly sunny and seasonal with a brisk breeze. Temperatures will be at more seasonal levels nearing 70°. Cold front #2 will pass late day ushering the coolest air of the season.

The cooler air will be much more noticeable early Saturday morning. The forecast low in the low to middle forties will be the coolest of the season to-date and the coolest In Indianapolis since last May.