Dry, breezy and sunny until ...
Sunday's storms marked the passage of the cold front that has brought us this bright, sunny and dry weather for the bulk of this week.
The high-pressure system pushing in on north winds will mean very pleasant weather for the mid-Atlantic through Thursday morning. Chances for some showers and thunderstorms return Thursday afternoon with the next cold front, and those chances will grow through the weekend as Hurricane Irene approaches.
The National Weather Service regional forecast office in Sterling is predicting highs in the low 80s Monday and Tuesday. In between, overnight lows may dip into the 50s Tuesday morning, and the 60s in the cities. By Tuesday night, Wednesday morning, we could record some lows in the 50s in the urban corridor, too.
In the meantime, forecasters along the East Coast are watching the progress of Hurricane Irene. Some additional weather balloons will be launched this afternoon at Sterling to support the effort. For now, here's what the local forecasters are saying:
"With most of the medium to long-range guidance taking Irene roughly up the Atlantic coast from the Florida peninsula to New England, will watch the progress and trends in the coming days. Irene, according to latest runs of these models, may affect the easternmnost sections of the [forecast area] Sunday into Monday of the coming weekend, early next week.
"The synoptic pattern over the Great Lakes, New England under this type of scenario would give the tropical system a bit of an opening to make this northerly trek up the coast..."
AccuWeather.com is predicting landfall Saturday night in the Carolinas.
Word to the wise: If your sump pump is ailing, or your storm drains are clogged, this week will be a great time to get them fixed and ready to flow.
Comments
During all the stormy weather of Thursday, Friday, and Sunday afternoon, my little corner of Randallstown/Pikesville barely got sprinkled on. It was amazing. I watched radar images of storms growing and moving, and they all missed. Meanwhile, other areas not that far away got drenched all three times. Sunday night, we got some storm-type rain, but it didn't last long. Enough to water the plants, which is fine.
How much rain did the upper Patapsco watershed get this week? Liberty Reservoir was a little low when I was there ten days ago.
Is there a measuring station for Randallstown?
FR REPLIES: All three reservoirs are in good shape - more than 90 percent full at the end of July. Liberty was lowest at 92 percent. But all are above the norm for the end of summer. Here's data for an unofficial station in owings Mills. http://bsun.md/pUEilQ
Posted by: Al | August 22, 2011 3:29 PM
Frank,
Do you think we'll at least get a couple of good rainy days out of Irene, at the very least?
FR REPLIES: People way smarter than I seem to think so. But it will all depend on the storm track and speed, and the low-pressure trough that will be steering the storm as it turns to the north. We're still quite a ways out. Stay tuned to the Maryland Weather blog.
Posted by: Amy | August 22, 2011 3:50 PM
Sunday near Penn Station, it lightly rained most of the day.
Last night, the roommate went to take the dog for a 'short walk' - the dog was outside for maybe 60 seconds, and it DUMPED rain, then as quickly as it began, it stopped (of course, just as the dog was crossing the threshold back into the house). The dog spent the next hour drying itself, and there was no more rain.
All in all, the ground got wet, but except for the one DUMP of water, that's about all.
Posted by: Mike | August 22, 2011 10:25 PM
so do we know what the forecast is for the Ravens game Thursday night?.........I know that lightning is the one thing that will postpone or stop an NFL game, and I'm coming into town specifically for the game......
FR REPLIES: Here's what the NWs is saying: "Thursday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms before midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 69. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms." Go Ravens.
Posted by: rob oliver | August 23, 2011 9:08 AM