Winter has officially arrived in North Georgia.
Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan said a seasonably cool Monday morning will give way to a seasonably cool afternoon. Lows in the 30s and 40s and highs in the mid-50s are right on target for the first day of winter, which kicked off at 5:02 a.m. with the winter solstice.
Atlanta’s projected high Monday is 57 degrees, according to Channel 2.
“Have the heavy coat around this morning. It is chilly to start the day,” Monahan said. “You’ll need sunglasses a little later. It might not look like it when the sun comes up. It’s going to be kind of gray, but by the afternoon it will be mostly sunny.”
While Monday will see the shortest period of daylight all year, Monahan said it only goes up from here. Starting Tuesday, North Georgia will tack on two seconds of daylight each day for the rest of the month, he said.
There is no rain in the forecast Monday, and the lack of clouds will make for good conditions for stargazing.
“You’re going to have a good viewing opportunity of the Christmas star, the great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, low on the southwest horizon,” Monahan said. “That will be around sunset tonight.”
Monahan said Tuesday and Wednesday should see more of the same.
“No bumps in the road through Wednesday,” he said. “We’re still looking pretty good through the middle part of the week. We’ll be in the mid-50s each afternoon, with morning lows down in the 30s and 40s.”
The big outlier is Thursday, which could throw a wrench in Christmas Eve plans. A strong cold front will move through North Georgia on Thursday, Monahan said, bringing heavy rain and an isolated strong storm.
It could also bring the possibility of snow on Christmas, according to Channel 2. Monahan said the front will send temperatures crashing into the 40s Thursday afternoon, and metro Atlanta should only reach the 30s on Christmas Day.
“And there may be enough cold air ― at least in the North Georgia mountains Christmas eve night, Christmas morning — for a few flurries or snow showers to mix in,” Monahan said.
According to Channel 2, a white Christmas is officially defined as at least one inch of snow accumulation. There has only ever been one officially white Christmas in Atlanta in 2010, when there was 1.3 inches of snowfall.
That amount of snow is unlikely in Atlanta this year, according to Channel 2 meteorologists.
For now, the only certainty Christmas Day is the cold, Monahan said. Atlanta has a projected high of 38 degrees on Friday, and temperatures Christmas morning will be down in the 20s, according to the latest forecast.
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Traffic is typically light the week of Christmas, and that appears to be the case Monday morning for all metro Atlanta interstates except I-85, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.
There are delays out of the Braselton area after a crash on I-85 South past Ga. 211, the Traffic Center reported. Drivers will want to use Ga. 124 to avoid the delays while multiple right lanes are closed.
» For a detailed forecast, visit The Atlanta Journal-Constitution weather page.
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