The Bottom Line

Wednesday's fantastic 50s and splendid sunshine was such a terrific taste of Spring!

Aaaaaand the warmup is over.

A brisk northwesterly wind will kick up on Thursday, driving cold air back into New Jersey. It won't be a dramatic "arctic blast," but a noticeable flip to more January-ish conditions. At least our weather will stay quiet through the upcoming first weekend of March.

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We are about a week away from two interesting developments in our weather world. The first, our next chance of rain — approximately next Thursday. The second, a more sustained warmup — into the 60s?

Thursday

I say it often, and I'll keep saying it: March is a turbulent weather month. And Mother Nature is such a tease. In late winter, we always see brief warmups, followed by even quicker cool downs. Temperatures will continue to flip-flop for the next several weeks. Of course, by the time it feels consistently "springlike," summer will be knocking on our door.

We're starting off Thursday morning with temperatures mainly in the 30s. Not too cold, but definitely jacket weather. Skies will be mainly sunny to start the day.

But by Thursday afternoon, that chilly northwest wind will really kick up, probably gusting between 20 and 30 mph. We'll see some clouds and maybe a flurry. And, most importantly, high temperatures will get stuck in the mid 30s (north) to mid 40s (south). I do think most of the Garden State will hit 40+ degrees on Thursday. But that's still a few degrees below normal for early March.

Thursday night will get very cold. Lows in the lower 20s. Wind chills easily dipping into the teens. Sigh, back to bundling up.

Friday

It will be bright and sunny, but the brisk wind continues (NW 10-20 mph). Highs will only reach the upper 30s to lower 40s.

Saturday & Sunday

The wind dials down, but the chill remains. Saturday will be partly sunny, with highs around 40. Sunday will be mostly sunny, with highs around 40.

Monday & Beyond

Warmer days are ahead! It looks like clouds will increase on Monday, but so will temperatures. We'll come close to seasonal normals, in the mid 40s.

A few rain showers are possible on Tuesday, as our next warmup really kicks in. We should see widespread 50s Tuesday afternoon, with a mix of sun and clouds.

On Wednesday, thermometers will push into the 60s for part of the state. (Not everywhere — NW NJ will be cooler, and the Shore will be influenced by the chilly ocean.)

Our next chance of rain will be on Thursday. That's a cold front, which will probably knock back temperatures again for next weekend. The long-range forecast does show a return to more active, stormy weather by the midpoint of March. (For the record, that means snow is absolutely still on the table.)

Dan Zarrow is Chief Meteorologist for Townsquare Media New Jersey. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter for the latest forecast and realtime weather updates.

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