A warm front will lift north of the area tonight, clearing out the light rain and bringing back the 80s to the area for the next several days. We start Thursday in the mid-to-upper 50s, with temperatures warming into the low 80s away from the slightly cooler coastline in the afternoon under increasingly sunny skies. For reference, normal highs for this point in the year are in the low 70s, though we will remain well under the record high of 87° set in 1995. Winds out of the south and southwest will be a little breezy, which might add to some slight complications for any outdoor lunch plans. Other than that, though, a pretty decent late-March day.

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.

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.

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.

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.

More seasonable weather for early March continues on Thursday with a few more clouds working their way into the area ahead of a storm system that’ll bring rain our way on Friday. We’ll start the day in the low-to-mid-40s before warming to the upper 60s in the afternoon. Rain chances should hold off until after midnight.

We’ve got one more day in the 80s coming up for Tuesday before the May-like warmth takes a backseat to more seasonable March temperatures. Temperatures will soar into the mid-80s in most spots except at the immediate coast as winds out of the west and northwest pin the seabreeze. We look to threaten record highs both at the airport and at downtown Charleston one more time — 86° and 83°, respectively, both set in 1961 — before a cold front sweeps through the area in the late afternoon/early evening hours.

Dewpoints will fall throughout the day as low-level moisture mixes out into an increasingly dry airmass. Once the front gets through, temperatures should hold in the upper 70s before falling quickly once daytime heating is lost. The front will pass through with little fanfare other than a wind shift more toward the north and then the northeast as cool high pressure builds in behind it. We’ll bottom out on Wednesday in the mid-to-upper 40s — easily the coolest start to a day since mid-February — and only top out in the mid-to-upper 60s in the afternoon, perhaps as much of a 20° drop from Tuesday’s high!

We had another record warm day in the Lowcountry today. The high at the airport reached 86°, breaking the record of 83° set in 2017. Despite the seabreeze making more of an inroads today, Downtown Charleston appears to have tied its record high as well, topping out at 79° to match the mark on March 1, 1918.

We will have one more day of record-challenging temperatures on Thursday before some of the extreme warmth begins to subside. Highs should top out once again in the mid-80s, getting within spitting distance of the record high of 85° set in 1997. This is despite some additional cloud cover and perhaps a few showers and maybe a thunderstorm in the afternoon and evening hours as southwesterly winds ahead of a cold front continue to strengthen across the area. Most of us will get the day in rain-free, though, with the better risk of showers and storms to our north near a frontal boundary. (This might or might not be such a great thing considering the absolute onslaught of pollen that continues across the Lowcountry!)

Mostly sunny skies and westerly winds will combine to bring temperatures in striking distance of additional records on Tuesday. Highs across the area will generally top out in the low-to-mid-80s, with the warmest weather away from the coast. The seabreeze is going to have a tough time getting too far inland with the persistent and occasionally breezy west winds, which should spread the 80s onto the barrier islands. The beaches should run much cooler, with temperatures in the low-to-mid-70s right on the coast.

The record high for Tuesday is 86°, set in 1962. While we may not tie or break that record, the record high minimum temperature of 63° set in 2021 certainly looks attainable.

We will continue to get near record highs for a good chunk of the rest of the week before a cold front — and perhaps some strong storms — approach the area Friday.

Our warm spell peaks on Thursday on the heels of a second consecutive day where we’ve at least tied the record high. Temperatures will soar into the mid-80s, getting within striking distance of the record high of 86° set just last year. We’ll see a few more clouds ahead of an approaching backdoor cold front, but we look to remain rain-free for one more day.