Since later this week will finally feel like spring across the northeastern United States, many people may be wondering if the mild air will hold through Easter weekend.

A change in the weather pattern will lead to the highest temperatures since late February.

However, residents will have to wait until later in the week for the warmth to peak. Cool air will first remain in control early this week.

Enough cold air may be in place for spotty freezing drizzle or rain in the central and northern Appalachian Mountains and western New England on Tuesday and Tuesday night as a new storm pushes moisture back into the Northeast.

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This storm is not expected to strengthen into the fifth nor’easter to slam the Northeast this March. It will instead remain weak and give way to mild air from the south to southwest later in the week.

The mild air will first surge into the southern mid-Atlantic at midweek with highs in the 60s replacing highs in the 40s and 50s early this week. Washington, D.C., and Richmond, Virginia, may even crack 70 F.

Highs in the 50s and 60s are expected throughout the Northeast on Thursday. Such highs will be 5 to 10 degrees above normal.

During a month where below-normal temperatures ruled, the lack of sunshine on Thursday may not discourage some people from still getting outdoors and enjoying the milder air. A couple of showers may also dampen the mid-Atlantic.

The showers are expected ahead of the next storm that may put the breaks on the warming trend by Easter weekend.

The current track of the storm would suggest rain along the I-95 corridor to end the week. However, if enough cold air catches up to the storm’s backside, snow may return to the interior and disrupt travelers heading to Good Friday services or their Easter holiday destinations.

AccuWeather Meteorologist Brian Thompson does not anticipate the storm to impact the Northeast for the entire holiday weekend.

“High pressure building in should bring some sunshine to the Northeast for a portion of the weekend,” he said.

In the wake of this storm, Thompson expects temperatures to fall back closer to average for Easter weekend.

Highs to start April typically range from the 40s in Caribou, Maine, and Burlington, Vermont, to the 50s in Boston, New York City and Philadelphia to the 60s in Washington, D.C., and Richmond.

“Even as temperatures fall back some, it will still feel mild compared to how cold it has been for much of the past two to three weeks,” Thompson said.

If the storm strengthens enough, that will be especially true for Sunday as chilly winds may whip through the Northeast on Saturday.

Regardless, those planning to head to sunrise services on Easter should anticipate to bundle up.

Temperatures may fall to or just below the average lows of the 20s in northern New England to the 30s elsewhere in the Northeast on Sunday morning.

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