Capital Weather Gang from The Washington Post

Daily forecast for the Washington area

D.C.-area forecast: One last day of summery warmth, turning sharply colder by Saturday

The Washington Monument, October 19, 2016. (George Jiang via Flickr)

TODAY’S DAILY DIGIT
A somewhat subjective rating of the day’s weather, on a scale of 0 to 10.

8/10: This rating you may debate, but to me the warmth feels great. Prefer the cold? Not long to wait.

EXPRESS FORECAST

Today: Early morning clouds/isolated shower/fog, then partly cloudy. Highs: 77-81
Tonight: Mostly cloudy; fog/isolated showers late. Lows: 61-65
Tomorrow: Showers increase during the day. Highs: 65-71

View the current weather conditions at The Washington Post headquarters.

FORECAST IN DETAIL

The record warmth is over, but today is still more late summer than mid-fall. But fear not, cold lovers, for the weekend is all yours. Showers will mark the transition on Friday, but unfortunately for our cadre of gardeners, there won’t be nearly enough rain to keep newly planted pansies happy. Dry weather should help those who have Halloween decorating on their agenda this weekend.

Today (Thursday): Early-morning risers could see a shower, while others see areas of fog. Most of the fog and clouds should burn off by late morning. As the day warms, clouds pop up anew in the afternoon. Temperatures are on a slower climb, but highs are likely to top out in the upper 70s to near 80 — still about 15 degrees above normal. Winds are light from the east and then shift to south by midday. Confidence: Medium-High

Tonight: The evening is one to enjoy with temps holding in the 70s and light south winds. By late night, shower chances start to improve, but the rain is still likely to be isolated. More patchy fog may develop. Lows hold in the low to mid-60s (practically the normal highs for this date!). Confidence: Medium-High

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest updates. For related traffic news, check out Dr. Gridlock. Keep reading for the forecast through the weekend.

Tomorrow (Friday): Showers are possible for much of the day, with the best chance of getting wet in the early afternoon. There is even the chance of a thunderstorm, but for much of the area, rain amounts are probably light, mainly less than a quarter-inch. Temperatures barely budge with highs confined to the mid-60s to near 70. Winds shift from the south to the northwest in the afternoon, becoming brisk by evening. Confidence: Medium

Tomorrow night: Showers are likely to linger well into the evening but should disperse after midnight as colder and drier air surges across the area on northwest winds gusting to 25 mph or higher. Lows range through the 40s. Confidence: Medium

A LOOK AHEAD

Saturday feels like fall, and late fall at that, with brisk northwest winds only slowly abating. Clouds keep popping up, and a stray morning shower is still possible. Highs reach only the mid- to upper 50s. Calming winds under starry skies lead to overnight lows in the upper 30s to lower 40s. Confidence: Medium

Sunny skies are back for Sunday, but the cool air is still in place and highs struggle to do better than lower 60s in much of the region. Overnight lows range from low to mid-40s in the suburbs to upper 40s downtown. Confidence: Medium

Monday is sunny but breezy, and temps still struggle to rise with highs in the low to mid-60s, little better than the day before. Confidence: Medium

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