I just stepped outside to let the dogs out on this early morning. As I looked up, the crystal clear skies are a strong indicator of the brilliant sunshine we will see all day. It’s the coldest morning of the season so far coming on the heels of a chilly Tuesday. I do expect temperatures to reach back into the upper 40s to around 50 this afternoon, in other words, a milder day.
High pressure from the north remains in control along with its continental polar air. This is the dry cool stuff that gives us the low humidity warm days in summer and cold and dry conditions in winter. It’s the dominant air mass this time of year.
A large storm which brought blizzard conditions out west is heading north and east. The core of the storm won’t hit Maine, but the cold front attached to the storm will.
The tail of this storm, the cold front, will slowly sweep through on Thursday night and Friday with a period of showers and some steadier rain. All the models agree significant rain will fall overnight Thursday and early Friday morning. One of the models ensembles (collection) I use has an average of about three-quarters of an inch of rain for the area. Some places could see twice that amount in some heavier downpours.
The morning commute Friday is likely the one to be impacted the most. You’ll notice a much milder and even slightly humid air mass in place Friday morning during the showers. This tropical air is part of the reason for the potential for significant rain.
Dry weather resumes for Saturday with a small weather system on Sunday. Saturday night and Sunday’s weather will look wintry in some areas. I am expecting some flakes of snow over the higher terrain and inland areas overnight Saturday and part of Sunday.
It’s possible the ground could even become coated or a few inches may fall across the higher terrain of western and northern Maine.
The image below is a prediction of snow accumulation from the GFS model. It does have the idea of snow showers across the area Saturday night and part of Sunday.
Next week is a big travel week. Presently, I don’t see any major storminess in the area or unusual cold. This is good news for travelers. I’ll be updating the weather on Twitter @growingwisdom. Please follow me there.
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