Here comes summer: Notable warmup about to unfold in Northeast
An area of high pressure will allow warm air to advance across the eastern U.S. High temperatures by the end of the week will be in the 70s and potentially even the 80s.
The weather roller-coaster ride experienced by those across the Northeast in recent weeks could be coming to an end as some upcoming dry weather will help set the stage for summerlike warmth to build.
Many across the Northeast got a brief taste of warmth over the past weekend, with several locations getting a few breaks of sunshine and milder air. The warmth was quickly erased by a quick-hitting storm that brought clouds and some rain to portions of the mid-Atlantic on Tuesday.
Temperature fluctuations have been one of the main weather stories across much of the region in the past month. Since the beginning of May alone, high temperatures have ranged from 53 to 77 in Philadelphia and from 44 to 71 in Buffalo, New York.
AccuWeather meteorologists say that several days of summerlike conditions are in the offing following Tuesday's brief cooldown.
"A large, northward bulge in the jet stream will allow for an area of high pressure to take hold of the Northeast by midweek, promoting a quick warmup for the East Coast," AccuWeather Meteorologist Andrew Johnson-Levine said.
The warmup will expand across the Ohio Valley, Northeast and New England from Wednesday through Friday. High temperatures are forecast to push well into the 70s or even the lower 80s from cities like Indianapolis and Detroit to Albany, New York, and Boston.
High temperatures of this magnitude are well above the historical averages for the middle of May in those cities. A typical day in mid-May would have a high temperature of around 65 degrees, with highs in the upper 70s more akin to the second half of June.
Farther south, locations from Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia to more southern cities such as Nashville and Charlotte are expected to soar into the 80s, temperatures as much as 10 degrees above the historical average for this time of year.
The milder conditions will be noticeable for some. Through the first nine days of May, the average temperature in the nation’s capital was 4.5 degrees Fahrenheit below the historical average for that timeframe.
During this warmer weather, most places will be dry, allowing residents to enjoy outdoor activities during the afternoon and evening.
"For some, the dry stretch later this week and into the weekend will be the longest stretch of dry weather since mid-April," said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dave Dombek.
As Mother's Day weekend nears, AccuWeather meteorologists anticipate a new wave of wet weather to sweep through the region. Early indications are that this rain could begin late Friday in the Ohio Valley before moving eastward through the weekend. For those along the Interstate 95 corridor, the weekend weather might turn out differently depending on location.
"The farther northeast you go this weekend along I-95, the more likely it is to stay dry through Sunday, perhaps from the Philly area northeastward," Dombek explained.
Conversely, Dombek said that farther to the south and west, for cities like Baltimore and Washington, D.C., there is a better chance of some showers at some point during the weekend.
Any wet weather that streaks across the region would be responsible for bringing the abnormally high temperatures back closer to the historical averages for mid-May.
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