Heavy rain has now lifted north of Greater Portland with lingering showers still possible this morning over southern sections and much of the day east of Rockland.

A frontal system that divides the cool marine air from milder air continue to push north. The overall weather system has brought a lot of rain to the region over the past 24 hours with a record 2.20 inches of rainfall yesterday and over an inch today. April is quickly turning into a wet month with over 4 inches of water.

The most unsettled period is now over, but I am not expecting major clearing or completely dry days for a while. The loop below from earlier shows how the rain is pushing north.

The next several days will be very similar. During the morning we will see bright sunshine mixed with some clouds. As the afternoon progresses, the clouds will build and a few showers could occur. In the highest of elevations these showers may fall as snow.

The predictive radar for 1PM this afternoon indicated most of the heavy rain over eastern/northern Maine, but showers are possible anywhere.

This time of the year, with a strong sun and cold air up at 10,000 and 18,000 feet, it’s easy for afternoon showers to develop. This type of unsettled pattern is actually very typical for the first half of spring. Eventually, as the entire atmosphere warms, this type of pattern becomes less likely, though can still occur even in July and August.

Temperatures today and tomorrow will reach the mid and even upper 50s, but turn colder for the end of the week when lower and middle 50s will be more prevalent.

The 10 day forecast which takes us into the first few days in May shows that overall, this period will average somewhat cooler. This doesn’t mean we won’t have warm days, but it does mean several days will be under 60F.

It’s going to also be cool at night, especially later this week. Many inland areas will have a freeze and while it might be tempting to put out some house plants now, if you do so, bring them in each night or cover them with an old sheet.

Hummingbirds

I checked the migration map this morning and the hummers are making steady progress north. I would put out food for them this weekend if you live in York or southern Cumberland County. It won’t be until May they get north of Portland. If you see any please tweet me @growingwisdom, I’d love a report.

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