If you haven't hung up your Christmas lights yet...do it now!

   If you haven't hung up your Christmas lights yet, do it now...unless, of course, you enjoy working in more seasonal weather like cold temperatures and snow.  Then you can wait.
   The pleasant weather we've been enjoying is going to remain with us into Thanksgiving day, but then a change is gonna come. I've been looking at some of the forecast models for the period after Thanksgiving and what we are in for will be daytime highs in the 30s and nighttime lows in the teens.  The fun should start on Friday after Thanksgiving. This cold trend will most probably continue right into Christmas. So it looks like the month of December is going to be cold with snow mixed in as well.
   Wax up your boards and skis, the winter sports season is about to begin!

Where's winter? It's coming.

   I was just looking back over my winter forecast that I posted during the summer. I wanted to remember if we called this right.  So far, I think we are OK. In that forecast I mentioned that the winter cold would arrive sometime around mid-November.  Well, we are getting close.  These 30+ degree daytime temperature swings (low 30s in the mornings and mid 60s in the afternoons) have been hard for me to deal with. I prefer a more stable temperature pattern.
   Anyhow, the cold is coming, but it certainly is taking its time.  The long range planning charts are indicating a turn to colder temperatures in the eastern U.S. around Thanksgiving. That should set us up for a cold December which will make you winter sports enthusiasts happy.  However, get out there quickly and enjoy it.  We will likely begin a trend to warm again by mid-January.

Nice Fall weather continues for another week or so

   Gosh, we are into a nice Fall weather pattern.  Sunday (October 10) temperatures shot into the lower 80s which is about 15 degrees above normal.  That was an anomaly. We are going to settle back to much more normal temperatures for the next one to two weeks.
   Looking at the week ahead (October 11--17) we will see daytime high temperatures in the 60s pretty much every day. That trend will likely continue until late the following week when a cool down will begin.
   Forecast models are showing a turn to much colder temperatures during the last week of October... Halloween week. Our nighttime lows will probably be dropping into the 30s during that week as well. We may even nudge a degree or two below freezing. We'll see.
   Interestingly, this is pretty much what I talked about in my blog posting the first week of August when I discussed the outlook for Fall and Winter..."In October, by the time we get to Halloween, we cool down to daytime highs in the mid 50s. Generally speaking, it should be a pleasant season for outdoor college and high school sports. I think you players and fans will enjoy it."
   If you want to check out the entire posting for Fall and Winter, go here: http://bobsweather.blogspot.com/2010/08/look-at-this-fall-and-winter.html
   In the meantime, enjoy the nice Fall.

Cloudy and wet for the first half of the week

   An upper level LOW pressure area is stalled over the region.  Radar looks kinda cool because you can see the showers rotating around the center. This pattern is going to continue into midweek.  It looks like we should start to get some sun back in the forecast on Thursday.
   Now, if you are looking for a return to more pleasant temperatures, we have good news. Beginning late this week and continuing into next week, a nice warming trend is headed for the area along with plenty of sunshine. So, if this weather has you down now, just hang on for a few days.

Some real fall weather is on the way

If you haven't had enough of the cool fall weather, more is on the way for next week. We are going to get a respite Wednesday and Thursday of this week, but another cool front will push through the area at week's end knocking daytime high temperatures back into the 50s for the weekend.  And, it looks like the unseasonably cool weather will extend into next week as well. We might even see our first light frost sometime during the next seven days. Better get out the sweat shirts and sweaters. Personally, I love fall clothing.

A warm beginning to Autumn

(Map courtesy of AccuWeather.com)

   Fall officially arrives Wednesday night at 11:09pm. Interestingly, the high temperature on Thursday, the first full day of Autumn, will be nearly 10 degrees above normal. This is going to be a warm week with daytime highs in the upper 70s and low to mid 80s (with the exception of Monday). Things will return to closer to normal next week, so the warm-up will be short-lived.
   Other than that, I don't see any big weather crises heading our way in the near future.
   Enjoy the nice transition into Fall!
 

It's been awhile

   Yeah, I know I haven't posted anything for quite some time.  There really hasn't been much to say.  We are in a really nice late summer and soon-to-be early fall pattern. I love these warm days in the 70s and the cool overnights. It's so much better than that string of 90s we had over the summer.  Sorry you heat lovers, but I'm not sad to see those go.
   The next couple of weeks don't look too dissimilar to the past few.  Temperatures will continue to fluctuate.  We will have some warm days and some cool ones.  I'm not sure we will hit 80, but will have a few days in the upper 70s at least.
   So, enjoy!  By this time next month we will likely be starting to turn the corner to winter.