We officially usher in the start of spring Thursday morning. And it doesn’t take long for the showers to follow.
We’re looking ahead to a soggy Thursday evening followed by a dip in temperatures as we move through the first days of spring.
A southeast wind keeps the start of Thursday gray. Low-hanging clouds will reduce visibility during the morning commute. And for those on Long Island, don’t be surprised if you encounter a few raindrops on the windshield.
It won’t be enough to make a mess of the roads, but you’ll want to leave a little extra space between you and the car in front of you.
Apart from scattered sprinkles, we won’t see steady rain until the evening. It will push in from the west in time for the evening commute. Those in the Hudson Valley and North Jersey should prepare for wet roads and pockets of heavy rain for the ride home.
In NYC and further east, rain will arrive later. If your commute is before 7 p.m., you should avoid most of the rain. After 7 p.m., expect a much soggier drive.
The bulk of the rain will fall between the evening and early overnight hours. Skies should be dry by the Friday morning commute. However, there may be a few lingering showers on the eastern half of Long Island.
Cold air arrives on the heels of the rain and will knock our temperatures down a peg or two.
In fact, it may get cold enough north and west of the city to support a snowflake or two early Friday. Just don’t expect to see accumulation; temperatures still won’t be cold enough for anything to stick.
But it will be cold enough for you to feel the change. Highs on Friday will stay in the low 50s and upper 40s, punctuated by some blustery northwest winds. This will keep feels-like temperatures in the 30s and 40s all day; a far cry from the 60s we were feeling earlier in the week.
We’ll see some moderation into the weekend before temperatures swing back below average next week for several days in a row, something that has been a novelty this month.
And forecast models suggest that at least the beginning of next month is going to continue with the chilly temperatures – a humbling reminder that “spring” does not always mean “warm.”
