Capital Weather Gang from The Washington Post

Daily forecast for the Washington area

D.C.-area forecast: Weather whiplash today with early warmth, gusty midday showers, and late-day chill

Iced-over branches at Arlington National Cemetery yesterday. (John Sonderman via Flickr)

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

5/10: Little something for everyone with early warmth, gusty midday showers, and late-day sudden chill.

EXPRESS FORECAST

Today: Warm early, gusty midday showers, colder late. Highs: Mid-50s to low 60s.
Tonight: Partly cloudy and cold. Lows: Low 20s to near 30.
Tomorrow: Chilly, but partly to mostly sunny with light winds. Highs: Mid-30s.

View the current weather conditions at The Washington Post headquarters.

FORECAST IN DETAIL

Ready for some weather whiplash? After yesterday’s icy mess, a warm start today turns damp and then cold again late in the day, as another arctic front moves through. This one’s not quite as strong or long-lasting, but it still puts a chill in the start of our work week. By midweek, though, temperatures are back to above normal with highs nearing 50.

Today (Sunday): Early-morning areas of fog should dissipate as temperatures that rose overnight continue to do so, thanks to winds from the south at 15-25 mph with gusts to near 35 mph. Most spots should see highs surge to the mid-50s to low 60s later this morning into early afternoon. But the front that brings occasional midday showers, mainly between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., sends temperatures back down into the 40s by mid-to-late afternoon, as the gusty winds shift to come from the northwest. Confidence: Medium

Tonight: Can’t rule out a lingering stray shower or even a snow shower as evening temperatures drop into the 30s. Skies should then partially clear overnight with a steady wind from the north, around 10-15 mph with some higher gusts, helping to cool lows into the 20s to near 30. 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 midweek…

Tomorrow (Monday): This time the arctic intrusion isn’t so severe, but still most of us spend much of the day near or below freezing, with afternoon highs only managing the mid-30s. At least winds are light, around 5-10 mph from the north, and skies are partly to mostly sunny. Confidence: Medium-High

Tomorrow night: A few mostly cloudy intervals are possible, but on the whole the influence of high pressure should keeps us partly cloudy. Temperatures fall back into the 20s with light winds from the north. Confidence: Medium-High

A LOOK AHEAD

We start to break out of polar chill (round 2) on Tuesday. High pressure maintains enough control for mostly sunny skies, and while we’re still on the cool side, highs in the low-to-mid 40s is decent progress. Tuesday night lows dip into the 20s. Confidence: Medium

Wednesday winds turn more from the south, as partly to mostly sunny skies help temperatures back to above normal, with highs heading for the upper 40s to the low 50s. Confidence: Medium

SNOW POTENTIAL INDEX
A daily assessment of the potential for at least 1 inch of snow in the next week, on a 0-10 scale.

0/10 (↓): Other than maybe a few passing flakes tonight, and perhaps a similar situation next weekend, it’s not a promising look for snow this week.

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