NJ settles into a consistently cool, dry, sunny weather pattern

After a good little soaking overnight, rain is moving out and sunshine will return quickly Wednesday morning. It will be another breezy (if not blustery) fall day, as another cooler air mass "whooshes" into New Jersey. Under mostly sunny skies, we'll see lower 60s Wednesday afternoon - about 5 to 10 degrees cooler than Tuesday. The rest of the week trends generally sunny, cool, and dry. By the weekend, it may start feeling pretty November-ish around here, with morning lows in the upper 30s and highs only reaching the upper 50s. I don't see any substantial rain chances nor warmups in our future for the next week at least.

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Wednesday NJ weather: Early morning rain, then sunny and breezy

Most of New Jersey picked up a couple tenths of an inch of rain overnight. There was one section of the state, the corridor along the Turnpike north of New Brunswick, that saw over a half-inch. As of this writing (7 a.m.), there are still a few showers yet to exit the state. And everyone around New Jersey is waking up to some wet roads and puddles.

But the rest of Wednesday will be rain-free, as we dry out and clear out very early on. Sunshine will win the sky from mid-morning through the afternoon, although some fair weather clouds will visit from time to time.

As another cool, dry air mass works in, it will turn breezy (if not blustery) throughout the day. Top wind gusts will probably be just over 20 mph.

Temperatures will end up 5 to 10 degrees cooler than Tuesday. Expect 50s in the morning, and then lower-mid 60s in the afternoon.

Wednesday night looks clear and chilly, with lows in the mid 40s. This will be one of those situations where it would be colder — but a little breeze will keep the air stirred up, preventing temperatures from really crashing overnight.

Thursday NJ weather: Dry and uneventful

I think that stiff westerly breeze will still be around on Thursday. Otherwise, Thursday will be a quiet weather day, with dry weather. And continued below-normal temperatures — a theme of this forecast, by the way.

Look for a mix of sun and clouds throughout the day. High temperatures will end up around the 60 degree mark.

Friday NJ weather: Sunny and cool

Friday morning looks prime for some frosty 30s in the coldest corners of the state. And then Friday afternoon's high temperatures will only reach the upper 50s for most. There may be some 60s to the south. But here is where we pick up a certain "November-ish" feel to the air. We may enter a string of "jacket all day" kind of weather here.

Saturday NJ weather: More of the same

We had been watching a chance for increased cloud cover and rain chances this weekend. But that storm system has all but fizzled out from model guidance, so we can move forward with a much brighter and drier outlook.

Having said that, I see no warmup in our future. Skies will be mostly to partly sunny through the weekend. But highs will still end up in that upper 50s to around 60 degree zone — still running about 5 degrees below seasonal normals for late October.

Looking longer-range, the Garden State's next opportunity for substantial rain doesn't come along until the 30th or 31st at the earliest. Yes, that would be around Halloween. But that is just an early signal toward more active, unsettled weather. It means literally bupkis in terms of a specific forecast just yet.

One more note worth mentioning. Tropical Storm Melissa has formed in the Caribbean Sea, but no direct or indirect impacts on New Jersey are expected.

Dan Zarrow is Chief Meteorologist for Townsquare Media New Jersey. Follow him on Facebook for the latest forecast and realtime weather updates.