Sunny, dry, and turning quite warm through the Holiday Weekend

Memorial Day Weekend Weather

High pressure will dominate the weather through the Memorial Day Weekend and most of next week.

For Friday, the center of the high pressure is still to our west. While the air will not be as cold as it was yesterday, it will still be a far cry from the warmth that is on the way.

With clear, sunny skies and north winds of 5-10 mph, expect temperatures to reach the mid and upper 60s this afternoon. The atmosphere will be very dry, with afternoon relative humidity values of 25-35 percent.

Temperatures will be about ten degrees warmer Friday night than they were Thursday night, with most areas sticking to the low and mid 40s. A few pockets of upper 30s will be possible, mainly in the typically colder pockets of the Southern Tier and Central New York.

Saturday will be just like Friday, only warmer, with highs reaching the mid 70s. Winds will be light, if not completely calm at times, and no clouds are expected.

Warmer air will continue to build in on Sunday with highs pushing towards 80 degrees. Not all areas will hit 80, but some will push beyond it by a couple of degrees.

There will be a few clouds on Sunday, mainly in the form of some thin clouds high in the atmosphere.

The long weekend will come to an end on Monday with sunshine, some fair weather clouds in the afternoon, and highs in the low and mid 80s. It will remain very dry with relative humidity values bottoming out at 15-25 percent.

The wind will pick up a little in the afternoon, with speeds of 5-10 mph from the north and northeast.

Undoubtedly, it will be a prize weekend for outdoor celebrations and activities. Please do remember to take some time to remember what Memorial Day is all about and recall the sacrifice so many have made so that we can enjoy the many things we have to be thankful for.

Next Week’s Weather

It will be more of the same as the weather fully embraces the unofficial start to summer.

Tuesday will have a mix of sun and just a few clouds with winds swinging around to the southeast. The influence of the Atlantic Ocean on the southeast wind will probably keep temperatures a degree or two cooler than Monday with more low 80s and fewer mid 80s.

By Wednesday, the winds will become light and variable, and temperatures will continue the climb they started. Many areas will be into the mid 80s with the usual mix of sun and afternoon fair weather clouds.

Thursday, the first day of Meteorological Summer, looks to the hottest upcoming day with widespread mid and upper 80s. A few of the warmer urban and valley locations will probably make a run at 90 degrees.

It will remain a dry heat, with dewpoints near or below 50 degrees yielding relative humidity values under 30 percent.

All throughout the week, nighttime temperatures will mainly stay in the mid 50s.

The first chance for rain, small as it is, will come on Friday. A small disturbance may touch off a few scattered showers and thunderstorms. As it looks now, most areas will probably not see rain, though.

Temperatures will remain warm, but will slip back to the low and mid 80s.

A few more scattered showers will be possible on Saturday, with increasing chances for rain next Sunday and into the following week.

As the pattern turns wetter, it should also turn cooler, with highs possibly only in the 60s for a couple days. With the expectation of clouds and showers, nighttime temperatures are expected to remain well outside any frost risk.

Please note that I will not have a blog post on Monday morning in observance of Memorial Day, unless something drastically changes. The zip-code based forecasts for the website and app will be updated daily, as usual, so you can continue to get the latest daily forecast in that manner. I’ll be back on Tuesday morning at the usual time.

More Information:

» Finger Lakes Weather Radar

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This graphic represents an average over the entire Finger Lakes region. Localized variations should be expected.