Get ready for some of the coldest air we’ve seen in a while. An Arctic Blast of Canadian air is moving in! A word you have commonly heard recently the “Polar Vortex” is responsible for this chilling forecast. Of course this happens every winter of varying degrees. The Polar Vortex is an upper level low pressure system residing at the North Pole. During the winter, the jetstream can buckle causing a piece to break off and slide south into North America. What does this mean for us… high temperatures are expected to remain in the 20s Thursday & Friday coupled with strong wind gusts up to 40 mph which will make it feel like it is in the teens.
As the Arctic Blast moves in tonight, a period of snow showers is possible. As temperatures drop below freezing, some snow could stick. Any accumulations will be light.
Computer models show possible accumulations of up to 1″. (Courtesy Tropicaltidbits.com)
The coldest temperatures will occur Thursday night and Friday morning as we will hover in the teens. Winds will still be busy which will make it feel like below zero.
Fortunately, the frigid air will only hang around for a short time before the next storm system moves in for the weekend. While precipitation may start out as snow or a mix overnight on Friday, milder air will quickly change it over to rain for Saturday.
Computer models show any snow/mix changes to rain Saturday morning. (Courtesy Tropicaltidbits.com)
While it may not rain the entire weekend, it will feel a lot better. A warm front will lift through on Sunday and gusty southwest winds will push temperatures into the 50s.
Computer models show next shot of rain ahead of cold front. (Courtesy Tropicaltidbits.com)
Precipitation should exit the coast before the next shot of chilly air arrives on Monday.
Looking Ahead to Christmas
An early look into your Christmas holiday weekend shows milder air will could return back to our area with temperatures in the 50s!
