DELMARVA FORECAST
Wednesday night: Clear and seasonably cold. Calm winds. Lows in the mid to upper 20s.
Thursday: Sunny early, then increasing clouds. Seasonable, with highs in the upper 40s.
Friday: Chance of a brief shower early, mainly north, then partly cloudy. Becoming breezy, with winds from the northwest gusting to 25 mph or more at times. Highs in the mid to upper 40s. Chance of rain 20 percent.
Saturday: Some snow or rain showers possible in the morning, then mostly cloudy. Accumulations of 3 inches or less. Highs in the upper 40s. Chance of precipitation 70 percent.
Sunday: Mostly sunny. Highs in the mid 40s.
Presidents Day: Sunny and mild. Highs in the low 50s.
Tuesday: Mostly sunny and mild. Highs in the mid 50s.
FORECAST DISCUSSION
Normal high: 48°F. Normal low: 29°F.
We're looking at mostly benign weather for the rest of the work week before our next weather maker Friday night.
As high pressure builds in to the Mid-Atlantic, sunny skies will turn clear after sunset Wednesday evening. The pressure gradient will relax, which means winds become calm overnight, which will lead to seasonably chilly overnight low temperatures that will fall into the mid to upper 20s by sunrise on Thursday. Frosty windshields will be likely and could slow down your morning commute.
After a sunny start, a weak cold front will approach Thursday afternoon, which will bring increased clouds. The front will cross Delmarva overnight into Friday morning. There will be little moisture for this front to work with, so all we're expecting is partly to mostly cloudy skies Thursday night with corresponding milder overnight temperatures. However, I don't want to rule out a brief, light shower up on the Midshore or Delaware. The chances are low, however, and should not have any significant effect on the Friday morning commute.
In the wake of the cold front, Friday will be partly cloudy and breezy, with a northwesterly wind that could gust to 25 mph or more at times.
Then the next weather maker arrives.
Guidance is in agreement that a "sort of" clipper system will approach the region on Friday evening. Unlike our classic coastal storms or "noreasters", these clipper systems come from the west or northwest, tend to move quickly and don't have a whole of moisture with them.
However, we will likely see some precipitation on Delmarva Friday night into Saturday morning, and some of it could be accumulating snow. Now, who sees rain and snow will depend heavily on the precise track of this system, especially since temperatures Friday night will only be around freezing. But, Delmarva should be prepared for at most 2 to 3 inches, and the best chance of accumulating snow will be on the Midshore and Delaware.
Any snow won't stick around though, as high pressure builds in for the rest of the weekend and afternoon highs on Saturday reach the mid 40s.
The beginning of next week will be dry and mild, with temperatures in the mid 50s by Tuesday.
The long-term 8-14 day outlook from the Climate Prediction Center has temperatures averaging near normal and precipitation slightly above normal for February 21 - February 27.
