A return to more typical January-ish weather is just 72 hours away

Three days left of this January thaw, and today is (by far) the nicest of the bunch. We will enjoy mostly sunny skies, a light breeze, and dry weather today along with high temperatures poking into the lower 50s. No weather nuisances or problems at all. Tomorrow will still be mild, although clouds will fill back in with a chance for some showers early and late. Saturday could be a washout with periods of rain from morning through night. And then as we dry out and clear out on Sunday, temperatures take a tumble, making it feel much more January-ish again for early next week.

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Thursday NJ weather: A pleasant January day

I have been loving the runaway warmth and massive snow/ice melt over the past couple days. (Although I am not loving how poorly forecast models are handling temperatures — while I can compensate for that in the short-term, it does not give me confidence that we have a handle on how the inevitable cooldown will play out this weekend.)

There's really nothing to complain about in Thursday's forecast. Most of New Jersey is starting the day near 40 degrees. The chilly spot, oddly enough, is South Jersey which has tapped into some cooler air with seeing temperatures in the 20s and 30s along the Delaware Bay.

I think high temperatures Thursday afternoon will average lower 50s around the state. North Jersey will end up a little cooler, South Jersey could go a little warmer. Skies will be mostly sunny, with some extra fair weather clouds building through the afternoon. Winds will stay light and weather will stay dry.

Clouds will thicken up Thursday night. Low temperatures will almost totally stay above the freezing mark once again, dropping to the mid 30s or so.

Friday NJ weather: Cloudy, mild, showers eventually

There will be two opportunities for raindrops on Friday. Most of the day does look dry.

Friday morning, just before daybreak, some patchy drizzle and/or fog may develop. For the most part, this just looks damp or foggy (or nothing at all) — but higher elevation areas of North Jersey could be just cold enough for some freezing drizzle or flurries. It is borderline, but worth mentioning.

Skies throughout Friday will be mostly cloudy to overcast. But temperatures will still be mild, in the 50s.

Scattered showers look to come back into play starting as early as Friday late afternoon. Not a sure bet, but you should be prepared to potentially get wet Friday evening.

Saturday NJ weather: Wet

This weekend's weather does not look great, as we transition from warm to cold and wet to dry. And because of an extended stretch of miserable weather on Saturday, our warmth will be significantly tempered as well.

Steady to heavy rain looks likely from Saturday mid-morning through late evening — yes, pretty much all day. Total rainfall will probably be about an inch across the state. Enough for some big puddles, but nothing catastrophic — we could really use a good soaking, after all.

Temperatures for Saturday are tricky, especially since estimates have come down a bit. My latest forecast calls for 40s to the north and 50s to the south. I think we will miss out on 60s unfortunately.

Sunday NJ weather: Cooldown

While the threat for steady rain should wrap up by Midnight, lingering showers will be possible through about mid-morning Sunday.

Early clouds will give way to sunshine. And as we dry out and clear out, temperatures will be set to tumble too, as cooler air returns to New Jersey.

As we have discussed, this is not going to be a big, bad arctic blast rife with biting wind chills, blustery conditions, dangerous cold, etc. It's just a correction back to typical January weather.

By Sunday afternoon, temperatures will be back in the lower to mid 40s.

And then Monday's highs will be around 40 degrees, with sunshine and a chilly breeze. Again, typical January weather.

With the return of cold air will eventually come the return of snow chances. Nothing in the immediate future, although medium-range models do hint at some snow showers late next week. Long-range forecasts lean toward a more active, stormy pattern in the 10 to 14 day range. We will see if that spells significant snow. Or rain. Or nothing at all.

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