Pollen, cold weather return to metro Atlanta

Tomorrow: Mostly sunny. Windy. High: 48

» For a detailed forecast, visit The Atlanta Journal-Constitution weather page.

If your eyes are itchy and you’re sneezing more than normal, don’t worry. You’re probably not sick.

Pollen has again returned to metro Atlanta in the heart of winter, according to Atlanta Allergy and Asthma.

The pollen count Thursday is 122 particles of pollen per cubic meter of air — more than two times higher than Wednesday’s count.

While far short of last year's season high of 4,107 particles of pollen per cubic meter of air, the number is significant.

Pollen levels haven’t been this high since May 23, when Atlanta had 135 particles of pollen per cubic meter of air. And the pollen count this time last year was 1.

Relief is on the way.

“We’re going to get really cold over the next couple of days,” Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Karen Minton said. “It’s going to feel like winter.”

Metro Atlanta had already reached the day’s high of 63 degrees — at midnight.

Temperatures at 5:30 p.m. were 55 degrees in Atlanta, 52 in Calhoun and 59 in Eatonton.

Friday “will feel awful” in Atlanta, she said. According to the latest forecast, the low will be 35 degrees and the high will be 48.

In far North Georgia, some isolated snow flurries could start about 11 p.m. Thursday and continue early Friday and temperatures could drop to the 20s and 30s, Channel 2 meteorologist Brian Monahan said.

“There’ll be a few little snow showers up to our north, and (I) wouldn’t rule out a passing snow flurry up in the mountains,” he said.

The snow isn’t expected to stick, Monahan said.

Meteorologist Brad Nitz said we may even get another round of warm weather in the not-too-distant future.