Eerie feel to the morning hours today. Heavy fog, no rain. Pretty still and muggy even. We were holding our breath for that cold front in the afternoon, and when it arrived….
well, some saw the temperatures drop sharply: Fitchburg and Worcester fell 9 degrees in one to two hours. But as it moved east, there wasn’t much to herald the arrival of the coldest airmass of the season. Oddly, the temperature went up in Boston, as we kicked out the sea breeze and low clouds. How’s that for confusing?
This cold front flies in the face of any classic winter frontal passage. Instead of getting smacked back to the very cold air with a howling wind, our highs will slowly crumble over the next two days and winds will slowly materialize by Friday. Plan on near 50 tomorrow, mid 40s Friday, low 50s on Saturday. At no point do we see that numbing cold in the Rockies and High Plains.
This little setup isn’t without a sense of drama, however. As the front stalls offshore (briefly) a little band of moisture will ripple along it very early Friday morning, kissing some folks with a little snow. Most of interior Southeast Mass will see the flakes, while at the coast we should see a combo of flakes and raindrops. This graphic seems to sum it up well:
Bitter air? Hold your horses. Not in the pipeline just yet. In fact, by Monday, we’ll see a mini-warmup ahead of a wet storm, then it’s back into the cold to finish the workweek.
Be well.
Pete