Here Comes the Temperature Tumble

It's time to shut off the A/C and say goodbye to those wonderful spring-like temperatures. We've seen 5 days in a row of 80º+ temperatures. Our afternoon highs have been 10º+ above average during this warm spell while our morning lows have been 20º+ above the norm. Clearly we can't sustain these kinds of readings much longer- something's gotta give. It will give in a big way starting tomorrow as a strong cold front sweeps in.

The attached map shows national temperatures near peak-heating during the day Wednesday. By the time you read this, it may be an entirely different looking map. The tight temperature gradient to our north is that cold front and its eyes are set on the southern Plains. It should arrive Thursday midday for most of Green Country. The morning will be the warmest time on Thursday – don't leave for work, school or errands without that jacket if you're gone for the day as temperatures tumble into the 50s by afternoon. They might level out for a bit before fall further to around 40º by Friday morning. That's a 40º drop in temperatures in 36 hours. Even though it won't be a record-setting chill, it will still be a shock to the system after May-like weather!

Scattered showers and a few storms are possible along and behind the front, so Thursday may be somewhat wet. The main issue as we head into the weekend will be the potential for a light freeze area-wide. While many of us have already experienced our first freeze of the year, it wasn't exactly a "killing freeze." Be sure to cover up sensitive plants Friday, Saturday, and possibly Sunday night! The sun will be back out starting late on Friday and will help temperatures to rebound to pleasantly cool, fall readings during the days this weekend. Temperatures should stay near or just below the 60º-mark, though.

Those readings will moderate as we head into next week. As of now, it's looking like a mild Halloween with temperatures topping out in the 70s. It'll be a far better Halloween weather-wise here versus the northeast. Category 1 Hurricane Sandy, pushing north through the Caribbean, will skirt pass the Florida and North Carolina shores before *possibly* being drawn back to the west into New England. Could be some very scary weather for them!

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