After a soggy Tuesday and Wednesday, Thursday started off with some lingering rain showers south; heavy snow showers in northern Maine. As this system exits to the north and east of New England, windy conditions will persist with snow showers ending from south to north for northern Maine by the afternoon, with clouds dissipating for the rest of New England, which will bring the return of sunshine today.
On this first day of meteorological winter and of the month of December, temperatures will soar to near 60° in southern New England, northern New England will see highs near 50°. We still have just under three weeks until the Winter Solstice (the start of astronomical winter). The difference between meteorological seasons and astronomical seasons is they each have different start dates because the meteorological seasons are based off of the temperature cycle, while the astronomical season is based on the position of the sun and Earth and the Earth’s tilt. It’s safe to say today will feel more like the start of meteorological spring than winter.
Enjoy the unseasonably warm weather while it lasts as temperatures will be dropping closer to normal for the weekend (low to mid 40s for high temperatures). The sunshine will stick around for Friday and Saturday with more clouds starting to stroll in for Sunday ahead of an unsettled weather pattern for next week. Speaking of Sunday, if you’re wondering what the weather will be like for the Patriots Game, make sure to wear the layers. Even though we will see mostly sunny conditions for the 1 p.m. kickoff against the Rams, it will be near 40° at Gillette Stadium.
Also, for this weekend, a few mountain snow showers cannot be ruled out, especially along the spine of the Green Mountains and could extend as far south as the Berkshires. The set-up for next week still remains up for debate as a few different scenarios can come into play as we will continue to monitor the possibilities thru midweek. The weather models are starting to agree with one another on a system for Tuesday into Wednesday, and then another one Thursday into Friday. However, it all depends on the timing of these systems along with the timing of the cold air that will determine whether we see rain, snow, or a mix. You can stay up to date on the very latest forecast by downloading the necn or NBC Boston app.
