For our Thursday, most of the day will be dry, but clouds and shower chances increase by late afternoon for western New England, spreading eastward through Thursday night along a cold front.
These showers will tap into tropical moisture for Friday as a low pressure system from the south moves northwestward into our area, ushering in more widespread rain with embedded heavy downpours and even an isolated thunderstorm cannot be ruled out for the Boston-area.
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This rain is much needed, as the recent U.S. Drought Monitor - released early Thursday morning - shows. The area now included in the severe drought has expanded through the mid-section of Vermont and southern New Hampshire. Both states have seen at least a 15 to 30 percent increase in area included under a severe drought compared to last week’s drought monitor.
Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maine have also seen the area under severe drought expand slightly since last week’s Drought Monitor report, but not nearly as much of an expansion that both Vermont and New Hampshire have reported.
However, the area under extreme drought has not expanded nor decreased since last week’s report. Some of the driest areas in New England have a rainfall deficit of at least 10 to 15 inches below yearly rainfall. Boston has officially reached 10 inches below normal Thursday.
Off and on rain showers are expected Saturday, but it will be a blustery day, with wind gusts up to 35 mph possible and high temperatures struggling to make it out of the 40s in northwestern New England and near 60s along the coast.
Local
As for the second half of the weekend, there is still a chance for snow in northwestern New England, but we finally get to see the return of sunshine for southern New England, but high temperatures will struggle to make it into the mid-50s south, low to mid 40s in the far northern reaches of New England.
As far as how much rainfall we’ll see through Sunday afternoon, weather models are projecting some areas to receive at least 2 inches of rainfall.
Stay tuned to necn and www.necn.com as we track the threat for snow accumulation for far northern New England, including northern Vermont, New Hampshire, and northwestern Maine this weekend.
