We have some great weather on the way for this Valentine’s Day.  It was a chilly start this morning with temps in the 30s, 40s, and even a few 20s inland.  However, we have a lot of strong sunshine already.

We also have very dry air in place with dew points in the 20s.  High pressure is right on top of us.

As the high drifts east a little more today, the wind will turn to out ouf the southeast. All of these factors should allow for some strong warming through the afteroon. Except for near the shore. So I’ve put the high temps in the upper 50s to low 60s this afternoon. Great weather to go for a walk outside with a loved one later today. 

By tomorrow, the high pressure system will move offshore. We’ll have the breeze picking up out of the southwest with winds gusting to 25mph. We’ll have a mix of sun and clouds, but we’ll have enough insolation (nerd-speak for sunshine) that we’ll warm up to near 70 degrees. Most models are dry for Friday, but a couple of models hint at a stray shower or sprinkle. 

A strong cold front will move through by Friday night. We’ll have much cooler temps on Saturday. Highs will only be in the mid 40s. Maybe even in the low 40s. We’ll have lots of clouds and rain is likely for most of the day. 

The forecast for the weekend is still very tricky, but the trend is developing. While Saturday is still looking wet and chilly, Sunday is improving a bit.  We’ll have a mix of sun and clouds. There may be some isolated showers, but the bulk of the rain looks like it will hold off until Sunday night into Monday.  Basically an area of low pressure looks like it is going to move in a little slower now.  So the drier forecast should allow temps to warm a little.  For now I’ve put the high up to near 50. But I am leary as the forecast keeps changing. Stay tuned for updates. 

The trend for next week overall is pretty wet for most of the week. 

In U.S. News. A new report came out about the billion dollar disasters that happened last year. The latest estimate is that hurricane Florence caused 24 billion dollars in damage. This was just behind hurricane Michael. Wildfires out west also caused billions of dollars in damage. All of these also caused numerous deaths. Here is the article with more information including some of the other billion dollar natural disasters: Expensive and deadly disasters of 2018.

Meteorologist: Jeremy Wheeler