We're going to come close to a record high today but it will cool off as the week goes on and it could rain by the weekend.
View full sizeA lone cyclist on Sunday pedals the lush hills of Hemlock Road near Mount Pleasant Road in Knowlton Township.And while it's been very dry -- in a normal year there would already have been nearly 11 inches of precipitation; there have only been 5.41 inches so far in 2012 -- the three-month forecast doesn't indicate we're necessarily heading into a drought, the weather service says.
So, basically, at this point, enjoy the good weather. As long as you're not running the Boston Marathon.
It happens sometimes in April, weather service meteorologist Dean Iovino explained this morning from his base in Mount Holly, N.J. If there were several unseasonably hot days in a row, it would be a bigger threat to people not acclimated to the weather, he said. And it we had a significant precipitation deficit in the summer, it would be a greater threat to farmers than a dry early spring, he said.
"If the whole spring remains dry," that could be more of a problem come the hot-weather months, he said.We remain in an elevated threat of wild fire, Iovino said, because debris left behind after the fall is very dry.
So, how do we go from the wettest year on record to where we are now?
"Basically, the weather pattern shifted very abruptly late in 2011," he said.Is it going to shift again in the next three months? The long-term outlook doesn't indicate we'll be wetter or dryer than normal, Iovino sad.
One thing he can say is we're not in a drought. And another other is we have to view the current weather in context. Sometimes it's warm and dry in April. Other years it's not.
As for April showers, Iovino says traditionally, the wettest month on the calendar in August.
But if you want to know how soon it's going to rain, Iovino said, "Right now it looks like a rain event this coming weekend."And there's a chance of showers on Thursday.
As for the rest of the work week, enjoy.