After an abnormally dry May and start to June caused drought conditions to worsen across parts of the Northeast, a stormy pattern will bring numerous opportunities for rain beginning this week and continuing into the final week of June.
Published Jun 21, 2023 12:36 PM EDT | Updated Jun 22, 2023 5:12 AM EDT
An active weather pattern will kick off the summer season in the Northeast and stick around into the upcoming week, AccuWeather forecasters say.
The lengthy dry pattern in recent weeks across portions of the mid-Atlantic and even parts of interior New England has resulted in zones of abnormally dry soil and even moderate drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Locations such as Washington, D.C., and Charlottesville, Virginia, have observed less than 10% of their historical average June rainfall to date. Both spots have recorded less than 0.70 of an inch so far this month, compared to the typical monthly amounts of over 4 inches.
Many other spots across this corridor from West Virginia, Virginia, Pennsylvania and western New York have also been parched due to a lack of rainfall. However, AccuWeather forecasters say relief may come later this week as a feature tracks into the Northeast.
“A broad upper-level area of low pressure over the southern Appalachians, Ohio Valley and Tennessee Valley will draw tropical moisture northward over the next couple of days, resulting in some rain,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Joe Lundberg said.
Humidity levels are expected to rise gradually across the Northeast into this weekend as daily showers and thunderstorms are ushered northward. Moisture will hang around into the upcoming week, allowing the wet pattern to stick around for a longer period of time.
“Just as this feature begins to exit stage right [this weekend], it will be replaced early next week by another area of low pressure dropping in from the Midwest. This, in turn, will instigate more rounds of showers and heavy thunderstorms throughout the middle of next week,” said Lundberg.
After a generally dry start to the week, cities like Pittsburgh had occasional showers shift into the city on Wednesday night. Intermittent showers and even a few thunderstorms will then continue to spread into western Pennsylvania through a portion of this weekend. Farther to the east, rain reached New York City late Wednesday night and continue throughout the day on Thursday.
Lundberg added that although this active weather pattern may impact residents’ outdoor plans and travels, especially this weekend, the rain is sorely needed rain for lawns, gardens and local agricultural interests.
Some locations could collect between 2 and 4 inches of rain throughout the next week as these two main weather features track across this region from Virginia to New England. It is not out of the question that some areas could exceed this rainfall range due to thunderstorms popping up and producing heavier, localized downpours.
Following relatively dry spring conditions that gripped portions of the interior Northeast, this rainfall on the way through the end of June may be beneficial and help to reverse the moderate drought conditions that have developed across part of the region.
In addition to the wet pattern shifting into the Northeast, some residents in Virginia, Maryland, southern and eastern Pennsylvania Delaware, and New Jersey on northward into southern New England will notice a brief cooldown on Thursday. Temperatures will be about 5–15 degrees Fahrenheit lower compared to earlier in the week.
Cities including Philadelphia and New York City will record temperatures in the 60s F on Thursday just days after highs in the 80s were observed at the start of the week. However, this cooldown will not last long as daytime high temperatures will likely climb back into the 80s F for much of this corridor of the Northeast by the weekend.
The mid-Atlantic and southern New England states will not be the only ones turning cooler in the near future. The jet stream is expected to dip southward across the Ohio Valley and Great Lakes later this weekend into early next week, resulting in noticeably cooler air pushing into the region.
Across the Great Lakes and interior Northeast, a stagnant air mass has left residents with hazy skies and areas of patchy smoke as Canadian wildfires continue to burn. Forecasters say there can be times of reduced air quality this week, particularly across a zone from Wisconsin, Michigan, northern Illinois, northern Indiana and northern Ohio.
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