Northeastern US: Drier, milder weather to make a comeback this week

Fewer disruptions to outdoor plans await residents of the northeastern United States by midweek as drier and milder air makes a comeback.

Anyone who had plans altered by wet weather this weekend will welcome a trend toward less rain and more sunshine through the first half of this week.

"Mostly dry weather will return to much of the Northeast and mid-Atlantic for the first half of the week," AccuWeather Meteorologist Brian Thompson said.

The upcoming weather will be great for anyone excited to sneak back outside for lunch, fire up the grill for dinner, participate or watch spring sporting events or enjoy any other outdoor activity.

However, it will not be a quick transition from clouds and rain to bright sunshine throughout the region.

A storm looming off the Carolina coastline caused clouds to linger along the mid-Atlantic coast on Monday. If the storm fails to move far enough offshore by Tuesday, another day of mainly cloudy weather can be expected in these areas.

Farther inland, lingering moisture can allow spotty showers to develop daily across the southern and central Appalachians into Tuesday.

The afternoon hours may be the most active, when a thunderstorm cannot be ruled out. Remember that as soon as thunder is heard, the risk of being struck by lightning is present.

The risk of a shower or rumble of thunder may continue over the central Appalachians on Wednesday afternoon, but midweek is likely to feature the lowest rain chances across the Northeast.

Warmer air will also be back.

Temperatures are expected to gradually trend upward through the first half of this week.

"Unlike the recent taste of heat, it will feel much more like May this week," Thompson said. "Afternoon high temperatures will be 10 to 25 degrees lower than they were late last week."

Temperatures will run close to average for early May to start the week, according to Thompson, before climbing to highs that are more typical later in the month at midweek.

Highs in the upper 50s and 60s across the eastern Great Lakes and New England on Monday will largely be replaced by highs in the 70s at midweek.

Temperatures are expected to approach or reach 80 F by the end of the week.

Coastal communities, however, will be slower to warm as cooler air flows in from the ocean.

Even though Thompson anticipates temperatures to fall well short of last week's record-breaking highs, it will be important to apply sunscreen before spending time out in the sun.

Allergy sufferers may face discomfort amid the milder weather as more plants and trees open up and pollen increases.

The Interstate-95 corridor and most of New England may continue to bask in the warmth on Thursday as a storm from the Midwest returns showers and thunderstorms to the eastern Great Lakes and spine of the Appalachians.

Latest indications do not suggest this storm will bring a repeat of Friday’s widespread damaging winds.

The wet weather will bring another round of disruptions to outdoor plans, but will be beneficial for those who have gotten a jump on their flower beds or cool weather vegetables.

The storm should knock down temperatures by the start of next weekend in many areas. However, as is typical in spring, the cooler air may not hang on long.

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