Freeze Warnings will become a distant memory by the end of the work week as we warm rapidly into the 80s by Thursday.
Temperatures moderate nicely into the upper 40s Wednesday morning with highs topping out in the low 70s. A coastal trough moving inland might spread a few showers around, but rain amounts should be generally light and most of us should get the day in rain-free.
From there, things get a lot warmer. Thursday starts ~10° warmer than Wednesday did, with lows not dropping far below 60°. Highs soar into the low 80s under mostly sunny skies, with just a few passing clouds from time to time. Friday is largely a copy-and-paste from Thursday, just with slightly warmer temperatures expected. We look to stay in the 80s through the weekend and into early next week.
Welcome to Spring! A Freeze Warning is in effect for inland Berkeley and Dorchester overnight into Tuesday morning, with a risk for patchy frost in other sheltered spots. This will be the last one of these for a little while, though, as a warming trend commences. It will be subtle on Tuesday, with highs running in the mid-60s as opposed to the low 60s — still well below climatology for this point in March. Skies will generally run mostly sunny with a few more clouds in the afternoon.
Northeasterly winds and the new moon will combine to produce tidal flooding during the Tuesday morning commute. Water levels could approach 7.3-7.5′ around 8:34am, which should be enough to close a couple roads in downtown Charleston. Be ready for delays if downtown is in your plans, particularly the west side of the peninsula.
First off: If you’re heading out tonight, expect the rain to stay away from Charleston proper until around midnight. It may begin to rain earlier the further inland you are, though, so keep rain gear handy just in case.
A cold front will come through the area early Saturday, putting an end to the brief warmup that closed out the work week. Lows will run in the mid-50s, but highs will only top out in the low to mid-60s in the afternoon. The bulk of the rain falls overnight, but scattered showers — and perhaps an embedded downpour or two — will remain possible through mid-afternoon, it looks like. A shower may not be completely out of the picture into the evening hours. With that in mind, I don’t see tomorrow as a total rainout — suspect most of us will get a fair bit of rain-free time in.
Sunday will be much cooler as high pressure continues to build in from the west. Despite more sunshine, highs will struggle to 60° as cool air continues to blow into the area from the north, with wind speeds generally around 5-10 MPH.
St. Patrick’s Day will be a warm one as southerly winds pick up ahead of a cold front. Gusts 20-30 MPH will be possible at times especially in the afternoon, which may have impacts on any outdoor activities. Expect highs almost 10° warmer than Thursday as they top out in the upper 70s. Increasing cloud cover will likely be the only thing keeping us from a run at 80°. We look to get much of the day in rain-free, though shower chances will be on the increase after sunset as the front draws closer. If your St. Patrick’s celebration extends into the night, you’ll want to keep rain gear handy.
Showers continue into Saturday morning as the front moves by. Scattered showers may continue to be an issue into Saturday evening, though I don’t see the day as a total rainout. Keep rain gear handy just in case, though. Highs look a lot different Saturday, with low 60s at best behind the front.
Skies go partly cloudy on Sunday with temperatures heading back below mid-March normals — struggling to 60° — as high pressure builds back into the area. We look to stay rain-free Sunday, so as long as you’ve got a jacket, the weekend isn’t a total wash.
Be sure you’re protecting pets and plants tonight as another period of freezing temperatures will be possible across the metro away from the coast. Even where temperatures don’t dip below freezing, calm winds will make for much more favorable conditions for frost to develop. So, regardless of where you are, be sure to cover those sensitive plants and have loved ones in and warm.
Thereafter, a warming trend will commence as high pressure starts to slip offshore, turning winds a little more southerly. We’ll see highs top out very near 70° on what should prove to be a nice Thursday across the metro area. A few more clouds will begin to fill in later in the day ahead of a cold front.
A Freeze Warning is in effect tonight across the Charleston metro area. Protect sensitive plants and bring in your pets tonight. We should stay just above freezing closer to the coast, but some frost can’t be ruled out. Best bet is to err on the side of caution and go ahead and protect that vegetation.
After an unexpectedly cool day in which temperatures did not get out of the 50s for the first time since February 18, we have another rather chilly day ahead for Tuesday despite full sunshine. Air temperatures to start the day will run in the low 40s in the immediate metro area (and cooler than that further inland), but factor in a decent 5-10mph northwest breeze and it’ll feel closer to the mid-30s in the morning.
As the day goes on, freezing levels will drop close to 4,000 feet and occasionally breezy northwest winds will continue to pump cooler air into the area, keeping surface temperatures in the upper 50s at best in the afternoon. This is more in line with early January normals than mid-March. A very dry atmospheric column will preclude anything in the way of cloud cover, so sunshine will be brilliant and unfettered at least, and should make the resulting cool air temperature feel a little better.
The main weather story for the week ahead will be a solid round of much cooler air affecting the area around mid-week. Some spots, generally inland of the coast, may run into trouble with some frost or freezing temperatures Tuesday night into Wednesday morning (and perhaps again Wednesday night into Thursday morning).
Sunday will start rain-free but with more clouds than sun as moisture builds down into the area ahead of a storm system which will lift a warm front very close by. Low pressure moving along this warm front along with the continued influx of moisture should be enough to kick off some showers and maybe even a thunderstorm starting early afternoon. The peak of the rain should be in the evening hours as the low makes its closest approach, with shower chances hanging around through about midnight. Temperatures will be in the 60s much of the day after warming out of the upper 40s during the morning. As the warm front peeks north, we could briefly touch 70° or so from the metro area southward, but I’d be prepared for a lukewarm rain.
