Metro Atlantans were finally able to enjoy a morning without the bone-piercing cold that makes everyone want to hibernate.
For the past few weeks, the area has seen its fair share of drastic temperature swings. After single-digit temps with feels-like conditions below zero for much of last week, we are on our way back up the temperature roller coaster with springlike weather this week.
Morning temperatures Tuesday were in the 40s, much higher than Monday’s 20- to 30-degree start.
“We’ve got warmer temperatures moving in, and we’ve got a little bit of rain in the forecast,” Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan said.
The high today will climb closer to 50 degrees, a return to average for this time of year. By the end of the week, though, we will be well above average with highs near 70.
Warmer temperatures often mean more rain, and that is already the case Tuesday. A light drizzle fell across parts of the metro area throughout the morning, with clouds lingering throughout the day ahead of more widespread rain Wednesday.
The increase in rain is a change from unusually dry conditions through the fall and end to 2023, but it’s not unexpected. Climatologists have predicted that the beginning of the year would be wet and cooler than average in the southern U.S.
That is due to a strong El Niño climate pattern, according to a seasonal forecast released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in December.
El Niño, characterized by unusually warm waters in the tropical Pacific Ocean, typically brings cooler and wetter than normal conditions to the southern half of the country. According to NOAA, the current El Niño could rank as one of the strongest since recordkeeping began.
News of additional rain is welcomed in northwest Georgia, where moderate drought conditions remain. That is a major improvement from November when an exceptional drought, the most severe drought category reportable, was declared for the first time in seven years. At the time, the metro area was under a moderate drought, one level above abnormally dry.
“It is like we took an eraser to the drought over the last six weeks or so,” Monahan said. “We were in really rough shape as winter began ... but what has happened over the last few weeks, just consistent, steady rain, some heavy rain — we basically eliminated the drought for the most part around metro Atlanta. It’s still holding on in northwest Georgia, but overall, we’re doing a lot better.”
According to NOAA’s forecast, Georgia’s drought should improve or disappear entirely by the end of March.
Heavier showers arrive Wednesday as a warm front lifts across the area. Highs then will be in the 60s, and we will be closer to 70 degrees on Thursday and Friday.
“Thursday is gonna be a pretty wet day for us with the chance for some thunderstorms mixed in as well,” Monahan said.
The National Weather Service doesn’t expect any storms to become severe.
“For right now, the main threat looks to be locally heavy rainfall with some flooding,” NWS meteorologists predict. “Forecast rainfall amounts through the week continue to be unseasonably high. Current forecast seven-day totals range from 2½ to 5 inches for areas north of a line from LaGrange to Athens.”
Showers are staying in the forecast at least through Sunday, and cooler and dryer air returns to the region Monday. Still, highs should stay near the seasonable 50-degree mark.
Credit: WSBTV Videos
— Staff writer Drew Kann contributed to this article.
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