THURSDAY’S WEATHER: Heavy rain to clear by midmorning as sunshine returns

After a few more hours in the rain, metro Atlanta can look forward to the return of sunshine Thursday and warmer weather headed into the weekend.

A little more than a half-inch of rain fell at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on Wednesday, marking the first measurable rainfall for the city of Atlanta in 21 days. Rain has continued overnight as a cold front pushes to the east, where the heaviest rain is falling at daybreak.

Credit: John Spink / John.Spink@ajc.com

Credit: John Spink / John.Spink@ajc.com

While there could be some lightning, there is no severe weather embedded in Thursday morning’s storms, according to Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Jennifer Lopez. Conditions are improving for the western suburbs, Lopez said, and she expects the rain clouds to clear across the entire region by 9 a.m. Thursday.

“All of this (rain) is going to get through us within the next few hours as that front inches its way into our area,” Lopez said. “We are gradually going to be seeing improving weather.”

Credit: WSBTV Videos

Morning showers with storms clearing out later in the morning

With the rain and clouds around, there is no need to bundle up Thursday morning. Temperatures are starting out mild in the mid-60s, and Lopez said numbers should stay there most of the morning. By the afternoon, she is calling for a high of 75 degrees for Atlanta.

She is also expecting some strong, gusty winds at times as a breeze moves in behind the front from the northwest.

Temperatures will begin falling after about 9 p.m. Thursday, and much cooler weather is in store Friday morning. Lopez said most of Atlanta will be in the 40s to start the day before temperatures rebound into the mid-70s for the afternoon.

“It will get a little bit warmer over the weekend,” Lopez said. “We’re up to around 80 on Saturday, and more rain comes in late Sunday, early Monday.”

Don’t get too comfortable with the warm weekend conditions, however. It could be next week that Atlanta records its first 30s of the season, according to the latest forecast.