DELMARVA FORECAST
Wednesday night: Mostly cloudy with a few showers early. Areas of fog. Lows in the low 40s. Chance of rain 20 percent.
Thursday: Mostly cloudy. Rain developing by afternoon. Highs around 50°F. Chance of rain 90 percent.
Friday: On-and-off rain likely, ending by afternoon. Highs in the upper 50s. Chance of rain 90 percent.
Saturday: Partly cloudy. A stray shower possible. Highs in the mid 50s. Chance of rain 20 percent.
Sunday: Cloudy with scattered showers, possibly mixing with or changing to snow late. Highs in the mid 40s. Chance of precipitation 60 percent.
Monday: Snow or wintry mix early, slowly tapering off during the day. Becoming windy. Highs in the low 40s.
Tuesday: Mostly sunny, chilly, and windy. Highs in the low 40s.
FORECAST DISCUSSION
Normal high: 49°F. Normal low: 30°F.
As high pressure has slid to the east, a southerly breeze has pushed Wednesday temperatures well into the 50s, and even a few low 60s. However chilly air aloft has kept lots of clouds around the region.
A frontal boundary will sink down from the north on Thursday. Thursday morning starts off just cloudy, but rain will arrive in the afternoon. Temperatures will drop to the upper 40s and low 50s with a gusty easterly breeze.
As the front stalls, on-and-off rain will continue Thursday night into Friday, with the rain tapering off by Friday afternoon. A welcome ½" to 1" of rain is expected.
The front will then retreat back to the north, and with a return of southerly flow, milder temperatures return for the rest of Friday and Saturday.
Saturday appears to bring a break from rain; skies will be partly cloudy with highs in the mid 50s.
Long-range guidance is coming into agreement that a storm system will develop off the Delmarva coast on Sunday. Confidence is increasing that we will see some rain Sunday afternoon, which could change over to wintry mix or snow late Sunday night into Monday morning. However, there is no agreement on just how much wintry precipitation we could see. Temperatures will not be very supportive of big accumulations of snow, although temperatures are expected to drop into the upper 20s overnight Sunday into Monday.
At this point, as we make our plans for early next week, let's keep in mind that there *could* be some wintry precipitation we may have to contend with Monday morning. Watch this space for updates as we get a better feel for just how much and what kind of wintry precipitation we could get.
Cold and blustery conditions return for much of the middle of next week.
In the long range, temperatures are expected to average above normal, and precipitation above normal for February 25 - March 3.