Great Day For The Race
On this Patriot's Day and Marathon Monday, the weather will be cooperative for outside activities despite the chilly start this morning when many suburban areas were frosty. The weather will be just fabulous for the Great Boston Marathon compared to the torrid conditions of last year when the temperatures sizzled to the range of 85-90. Over the last decade, the Boston Marathon temperatures have been closer to the average for mid-April and that is in the middle to upper 50s. Last year was an aberration like 2004 which was also in the 80s. It will be a dry day with sunshine filtered and dimmed by varying amounts of high and mid-level cloudiness. There will be NO rain and the wind will not be a huge issue either. With that said, the breeze will be a bit of a head wind as the runners proceed eastbound and get closer and closer to Boston. The speed should not exceed 8-12 mph. Temperatures will rise to near 50 by 11am to 53 by noon to 54-58 inland by 2pm but stall or even fall back to the upper 40s closer to the coast. WBZ provides exclusive coverage through 3pm with highlights on the 5,6 and 11pm newscasts. You can also see a repeat of the Marathon on myTV38 this evening starting at 8pm. It will be a fantastic day for the spectators albeit a trifle cool. With many on vacation this week and for those of you hanging around home today, the weather is just fine for yard work, walking, running, etc.
A bubble of high pressure will shift offshore during the day providing a light breeze. An area of high thin cloudiness on the northern fringe of the moisture that delivered rainy conditions to the second half of the Masters Tournament will be shifting across the area today. Additionally, varying amounts of mostly mid-level cloudiness associated with a warm frontal boundary in central NY will also shift across the region into the afternoon. Consequently, the sunshine will be filtered and dimmed at times. As the high builds offshore late today, more of a southerly breeze will set up inland late in the day and that southerly wind will freshen to 12-28 mph tomorrow resulting in cool conditions at south-facing coastal areas with afternoon highs there in the range of 48-54 ranging up to the warmest places northwest of Boston that will reach the middle to upper 60s. A cold frontal boundary will be sagging southeastward from southern Canada and it will touch off a broken line or two of showers and boomers over northern NY into far northern New England. As this action dips toward southern New England tomorrow night, it will weaken so most areas near and south of the MA Pike will probably receive no rain. The front will sag into extreme southern New England Wednesday morning and there is a slight risk that it might trigger a few spotty showers during Wednesday but most of the support will be tracking offshore. With varying amounts of clouds giving way to sunshine, it should warm up to the middle 60s inland but a developing sea breeze will cause cooling back to the lower 50s to upper 40s along the coast in the afternoon.
Looking ahead, the circulation around an offshore building ridge of high pressure surface and aloft will escort warmer and more moist air into the Northeast later in the week. In fact, I think you'll feel the higher humidity by late Thursday and especially Friday. We will be vulnerable to varying amounts of low cloudiness as the moist air flows up over the cooler ocean and into New England. At the same time, there will be significant warming aloft. As a result, the warmest areas will be those located farther away from the cooling effects of the ocean in a brisk southerly flow. That means areas northwest of Boston could be near 70 on Friday while the South Coast and Cape Cod will be closer to 50-55. An approaching cold front will contain a widening ribbon of rain and isolated lightning and thunder. This action will be moving into New England later Friday night with a slow shift eastward across the region on Saturday. After that, a large zone of high pressure should take control and provide sunny, cool weather next Sunday and a week from today.
Joe Joyce posts a fresh blog early this evening and I shall return early tomorrow morning.
Make it a grest day!
