June 25, 2012: Chilly Temperatures Briefly Return

Forecast Highlights:


- Chilly Tuesday; gradual warm up through Friday
- Brief surge of heat possible on Friday and/or weekend
- Additional storm chances for the weekend


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Today's Observations:

A cold front moved through the region today, following the last cold front on Friday which resulted in severe thunderstorms in parts of the area. Today's cold front didn't result in widespread severe weather similar to that of Friday, but widespread storms were still observed with two rounds; in the late overnight to early morning hours, heavy rain/thunderstorms with some hail and gusty wind reports moved through the area, focusing over SE NY, NYC and Long Island, where amounts locally up to 2 inches were observed. Several hours of dry weather were observed afterwards, followed by the cold front moving through in the afternoon, resulting in a line of strong thunderstorms moving through SE NY, parts of NE NJ, NYC, and parts of Long Island/SW CT in the afternoon hours, once again bringing heavy rain and some hail. The afternoon line was followed by additional scattered storm activity. Temperatures were noticeably cooler than those of yesterday, only reaching the mid to upper 70s from NYC and further north/west and the lower to mid 70s in Long Island/S CT.


Tomorrow's Outlook:


A chilly air mass has moved into the region behind the cold front, and will stay in place through tomorrow while a coastal low pressure develops off the New England coast and retrogrades into Maine. Partly cloudy skies are expected with a risk of isolated showers in the afternoon, especially north/NE of the city, with highs reaching the lower to mid 70s inland and the mid 70s across the rest of the area, getting close to the upper 70s in the immediate NYC area.


Wednesday - Next Weekend: Warming Up; Storms Return


Temperatures will gradually warm up late this week as the upper level low gradually weakens and exits the region. Mostly sunny skies are expected for Wednesday with temperatures reaching the upper 70s to lower 80s across the area, approaching 85 degrees in the immediate NYC area. Warmer temperatures are expected for Thursday, with highs reaching the mid to upper 80s for most places, reaching 90 degrees in parts of the immediate NYC area.

By the late week into next weekend, a massive surge of heat will move into the central and southern US, with widespread 100-110+ degree temperatures spreading across the southern US and into parts of the Ohio Valley and the southern Mid Atlantic regions. The area will be near the northern edge of this very warm air mass, with 850mb temperatures close to 20C. With the area near the gradient, however, there is also going to be a risk of thunderstorms during this time frame, which is likely between at least Friday through Monday. Temperatures are generally expected to be in the mid to upper 80s across the area with the drier/sunnier days reaching the 90s in parts of the area, especially west/SW of NYC, with a risk of thunderstorms each day. Not every day is expected to have rain, although the potential is there for at least some days to bring thunderstorms. Stay tuned for more information on the outlook for next weekend.