Coming Attractions
Tropical Storm Fay battered Bermuda early Sunday with official wind gusts to 82 mph and unofficial reports from higher elevated locations of the island at 86 mph at Devonshire and a whopping 109 mph at Smiths Parish! Rainfall of 2 to 4 inches occurred in a short period of time as the storm accelerated across the island on its way east-northeastward across the open Atlantic. Check out this storm information courtesy of Rob Macedo who is a SkyWarn Coordinator for the NWS in Taunton and Director Of Operations for the VoIP Hurricane Network. Fay became a minimal hurricane during the day and will be weakening to an extratropical storm on Monday way out at sea. Meantime, all eyes will now be focused on Tropical Storm Gonzalo as it approaches the Leeward Islands. A Hurricane Watch is now posted for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands as Gonzalo is expected to become a hurricane by Tuesday morning. For more information, logon to the National Hurricane Center.
Present indicators project the path of Gonzalo near Puerto Rico then northward. It is uncertain if it will become a major threat to Bermuda late Friday or during next weekend. Early guidance suggests it will be a very close call but very unlikely that it will ever get close to the East Coast. It is more likely to take a course near or east of Bermuda. It is, however, projected to become a dangerous hurricane in the days ahead.
Meantime, a sharp impulse spilling out of the Rockies will sharply deepen a trough of low pressure into the Lower Plains States into Monday so an outbreak of severe weather will commence and shift eastward over the next few days as the system closes off into an energetic low pressure system aloft. It will tap a rich moisture supply and result in a ribbon of heavy rain with embedded nasty boomers and perhaps isolated tornadoes. This feature will impact our weather later in the week and the latest guidance suggests a deceleration so the heaviest rain might hold off until late Thursday night and Friday. That would be good news for Pats fans especially those attending the Thursday Night Game against the Jets. You can see that contest on WBZ.
Based upon the latest scenario, it appears it will be damp with some mist and light showers possible with a temperature near 60 degrees throughout the game with a 10-15 mph easterly breeze. If that system speeds up a bit, it could be quite wet at Gillette.
Backing up to the beginning of this week, we have another nippy night to deal with as temperatures tank to the 30s in many of the suburbs resulting in a scattering of frost in the usual vulnerable lowland locations that have already experienced a few frosty episodes so far this fall. High pressure will be poised right over the region to support radiational cooling under a clear sky. That big high will shift offshore and in combo with the approaching deep trough/cutoff low, a flow of increasingly humid and warmer air will set up along the eastern seaboard into New England. Some high cloudiness will be the precursor especially tomorrow afternoon with varying amounts of low and high clouds for Tuesday and Wednesday when temperatures will tilt upward into the 70s. The record high for October 14, this Tuesday, is 81 degrees set back in 1923. That will not be broken but some spots may reach the upper 70s farther away from south-facing coastal locations. After that round of rain late Thursday night and Friday, another spell of showers is probable later next Saturday into Sunday morning.
Finally, the fall foliage extravaganza continues with peak conditions approaching the northern and western suburbs in the next few days. As per usual, there are mixed reviews pertaining to the beauty of the foliage. In your travels, you will encounter bursts of vibrant color and landscapes of muted or dull color. It is a variable deal for sure. For updated information on the color wave, check out the leafpeepers.
