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Author: Jared Smith

Jared Smith founded @chswx on Twitter in 2008 as an experiment in disseminating weather data through social media. In the ensuing decade-and-a-half, @chswx has provided live coverage of tropical cyclones, tornadoes, severe weather, and even a couple bouts of winter weather to the good people of Charleston, SC.

More rain for Saturday, but Sunday promises improvement

/ February 5, 2021 at 9:07 PM

Showers, overcast, and chilly temperatures will continue on Saturday. The best rain chances will come in the afternoon into Saturday night as some upper-level energy and a surface low pressure system traverse the area. The weather improves Sunday as low pressure moves away from the area, yielding to high pressure building back into the area from the northwest. Cloud cover will scour out, allowing temperatures to rise into the mid-to-upper 50s across the area with ample sunshine throughout the day, giving you a great excuse to skip the 12 hours of Super Bowl pregame shows and get outside for a bit.

There will be an outside shot at some minor coastal flooding very early Sunday morning (high tide ~4:01am) as low pressure deepens off the coast. The current tide forecast peaks around 6.9’, which could be just enough to put some salt water on Hagood Ave. at Fishburne. Given the early hour on a weekend, it should not have major impacts on travel. We remain at five total coastal flooding events (tide levels at or above 7.0’ mean lower low water) so far in 2021.

Periods of showers to close the work week and start the weekend

/ February 4, 2021 at 9:14 PM

After a few chilly but dry days, the rain’s back in the weather picture for Friday ahead of a cold front. It’ll be a little warmer with highs around 60° mid-afternoon before the front gets through. Rain chances decrease some for Saturday morning, but then ramp back up as more upper-level energy and surface low pressure approach the area. Saturday will be on the chilly side with highs just topping out in the low 50s. High pressure returns for Sunday. Clouds will hang around but there should be some peeks of sun as well, and that will help us warm a little into the mid-50s.

Rest of the work week: A couple quiet days before Friday rain

/ February 2, 2021 at 9:15 PM

Chilly temperatures will define the next couple days as Arctic air continues to spill into the area. We’ll start Wednesday below freezing in most locations away from the immediate coast; despite full sunshine, temperatures will struggle to reach the low 50s. Another freezing cold night is ahead for Thursday, but the afternoon will be a little warmer as winds swing around to the south ahead of the next cold front. Cloud cover will increase and help keep us warmer for Friday morning, with lows in the mid-40s. By Friday afternoon, we’ll see highs return to the low 60s — and a pre-frontal band of showers will roll through the area as well.

Breezy & chilly Tuesday, but at least there will be some sun

/ February 1, 2021 at 9:33 PM

Cooler and drier air will rush into the area tonight into Tuesday, helping to break up the cloud cover but keeping us rather chilly. Breezy northwest winds will make tomorrow morning’s mid-30s feel more like the 20s, so if you’re headed out in the morning, make sure you’ve got a little layering going on to stay warm. Despite some downslope flow, highs will struggle to reach 50° in the afternoon with periods of cloud cover. (At least it won’t be raining.)

Wettest January since 2010 comes to a close

/ at 8:52 AM

January 2021 has come to an end. It was an interesting month in many ways, but as far as weather goes, the month was on the warm and wet side of what passes for normal around here, but wasn’t too out of bounds.

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The week ahead: Midweek sunshine bookended by showers

/ January 31, 2021 at 6:54 PM

We will begin February much as we spent about half of January: Chilly, cloudy, with occasional showers in the area. Fortunately, showers will depart for mid-week, as chilly high pressure runs the show through Thursday. Watch for some frosty and freezing temperatures mid-week before a warming trend commences Thursday afternoon. By Friday, we’re scraping 70° again as we return to the warm sector ahead of our next storm system, with showers becoming possible late in the day. Timing of our next front is somewhat suspect, so you’ll want to keep an eye on the forecasts for the weekend in anticipation of adjustments to rain chances and temperatures.

A windy and rainy Sunday ahead

/ January 30, 2021 at 5:58 PM

Cloud cover has arrived, and the rain will pick up as Sunday goes on as yet another cold front makes its way toward our neck of the woods. The best chances of the heaviest rain will come later in the afternoon into the evening hours, but showers will be possible at really any point of the day. Once it’s all said and done, we could log another half-inch to inch of rain in the books to close out January.

Temperatures will run in the mid-60s with a stiff southerly wind pumping warm, moist air into the region. Gusts could reach 30 MPH at times, particularly on exposed overpasses and bridges, so be cautious when traveling tomorrow.

There will be a small risk of some minor coastal flooding with tomorrow morning’s high tide, which would primarily affect areas near The Citadel and around Lockwood Dr. High tide is forecast to peak a little after 9:30am.

Friday and the weekend: Mostly sunny and cold for Friday and Saturday, with rain returning Sunday

/ January 28, 2021 at 6:57 PM

Chilly high pressure will continue to build into the area tonight into Friday, bringing freezing temperatures very close to the coast to start the last day of the work week. Temperatures will struggle to reach 50° despite full sunshine. Expect mostly sunny skies to prevail through Saturday as temperatures moderate back into the mid-50s in the afternoon. Our next storm system begins to affect the area possibly as early as late Saturday night, with rain likely on Sunday. Can’t rule out a few rumbles of thunder, either. It’ll be noticeably warmer — highs in the mid-60s will be common Sunday in the warm sector of the storm system before it moves through late Sunday into early Monday.

Windy, cooler, but clearing up for Thursday

/ January 27, 2021 at 9:55 PM

A cold front will swing through overnight, bringing much cooler and drier air to the Lowcountry for the next few days. Wind gusts 30-35 MPH could be common overnight into Thursday morning, with higher gusts possible on bridges and overpasses. Be careful during your morning commute.

Skies should clear out by midday, but despite plenty of sunshine, temperatures will struggle to the low 50s as cold air pumps into the area. But, hey, the sun will come out, and that’s better than we can say for the last few days.

Rainy Wednesday ahead

/ January 26, 2021 at 9:18 PM

Get ready for a soggy Wednesday as a cold front and upper disturbances combine to produce quite a bit of rainfall. Atmospheric moisture will be abnormally abundant for this time of year, allowing for most areas to receive over an inch of rain tomorrow. Temperatures will top out in the low 60s as a front sags south of the area.

Rain looks to begin to taper off in the evening hours as a secondary front pushes offshore. This will bring in cooler and drier air overnight, and by sunrise Thursday we should be seeing rapid clearing.