Meteorological Spring began on March 1. Astronomical spring begins with the Vernal Equinox this Wednesday, March 20, at 5:58pm EDT. Aside from our brief taste a few days ago, when will it really feel like Spring? Probably not this week.
Once again, we’ve got another fairly quiet week coming up across the region, thanks to high pressure. As it builds it, we’ll have dry and chilly weather for the next few days. Chilly is of course a relative term, as “chilly” in mid-March is a lot different than “chilly” in mid-January. We’ll moderate a bit for the first day of Spring on Wednesday as the high moves offshore. It might even be a decent day for some ice cream, since Dairy Queen is offering a free small vanilla cone to celebrate the start of Spring. Then again, is there a bad day for ice cream?
By Thursday we’ll have a cold front approaching the area. It will bring in some showers. Colder air moves in on Friday, and with an upper-level disturbance moving through, some rain or snow showers are possible. We’re not looking at any accumulation around here, but it’s just a reminder that even though it’ll be “Spring”, Mother Nature follows her own calendar.
High pressure returns on Saturday with much colder conditions. It’ll feel like winter, with highs in the upper 30s to middle 40s. The high moves offshore, and we’ll quickly warm up again on Sunday.
Monday: Sunshine and afternoon clouds. High 37-44.
Monday night: Partly cloudy. Low 21-28.
Tuesday: Partly sunny. High 37-44.
Tuesday night: Clear skies. Low 22-29.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny for much of the day, clouds start to stream in by late afternoon. High 43-50.
Thursday: Plenty of clouds and breezy with scattered showers. High 44-51.
Friday: Some early sun, then clouding up again with a few rain or snow showers possible, breezy. High 41-48.
Saturday: Sunshine. Lots of it. Blustery. High 37-44.
Sunday: Plenty of sunshine again, with just a few clouds around. High 53-60, cooler along the South Coast.
There are some indications that we could be looking at a storm around here next Tuesday or Wednesday. It’s obviously way too early for any specifics, and we’re not expecting this to be a snowstorm, but it might not be just rain either. Late-season snowstorms aren’t unheard of, as we’ve had big storms well into April and even early May before. If the models continue down this path, well obviously have more info in our weekly outlook next week. Basically, we’re just telling you now that you shouldn’t take the ice scraper out of the car and put away your winter clothing just yet.
Storm HQ 