Temperatures across NJ on the rise, just in time to spring into Spring

On this last full day of winter, a warming trend will finally kick in. Whereas Wednesday, we were stuck in the 30s all day, Thursday will see widespread 40s in the afternoon. Still cooler than normal, but better. For the first day of spring on Friday, it will get even warmer, with highs pushing into the mid 50s. Rain could start to threaten New Jersey's western border by late Friday afternoon, with everyone in the state getting wet by sometime Friday night. The weekend stays mild, in the 50s on Saturday and the 60s on Sunday. Then our next batch of rain and cooldown arrives late Sunday night.

Get our free mobile app

Thursday NJ weather: Better temps, partly sunny skies

The past couple of days have been rather ridiculous, feeling mid-winter-ish around New Jersey. On Wednesday, all three of our main climate reporting stations — the airports at Newark, Trenton, and Atlantic City — only reached a max temperature of 37 degrees. Brrr!

Thursday will be better. Temperatures will still hang a few degrees below seasonal normals. It will feel more like a typical early March day than late March. Still jacket weather. But again, the operative word is ... better.

It is a chilly morning, with temperatures on either side of 30 degrees. Highs Thursday afternoon will reach the mid 40s. I would not be surprised to see the southwest corner of the state touch 50 degrees.

Expect pleasant partly sunny skies, a light breeze blowing from the southeast, and almost completely dry weather. (I have to say almost, because the chance of a sprinkle or flurry this evening is not quite zero.)

With scattered clouds overhead, Thursday night will be quiet but chilly. Lows will dip into the mid 30s.

Friday NJ weather: Mild start to spring, rain arrives late

The Vernal Equinox — the official start to Spring — arrives at 10:46 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time. And we welcome the new season with a great weather day.

Skies on Friday will progress from sun to clouds, with a stiff breeze up to about 20 mph. High temperatures will push to the mid 50s, now just above seasonal normals.

The one snag in Friday's forecast is an increasing chance of rain late-day. That wet weather could push in as early as the late afternoon hours. More likely, raindrops will spread throughout the Garden State in the evening and overnight hours. This storm system should not be a big deal, with most forecast models putting a tenth to a quarter of an inch of total rainfall over us. It is just wet, nothing wintry or severe here.

Saturday NJ weather: Drying out, warmup continues

Raindrops should be done falling by daybreak Saturday, although you may have to deal with residual puddles, wet ground, mist and spread through the morning.

The remainder of Saturday looks great. As clouds give way to sunshine by the afternoon, temperatures will respond nicely. Forecast highs are in the 55 to 60 degree range for Saturday. Seasonably mild and comfortable. Possibly enough to ditch the jacket for a few hours in the afternoon, especially if sunshine is abundant.

Sunday NJ weather: Hopefully hitting 60s

Sunday still looks like the warmest day of the week, despite skies turning mostly cloudy or even overcast at times. Highs push into the lower 60s. Maybe even some mid 60s in inland South Jersey.

Another storm system, a cold front, will approach late Sunday. But I think any rain showers or thunderstorms will hold off until late Sunday night.

Behind that front will come another cooldown into early next week. The latest numbers show highs will descend to around 50 on Monday, another windy and blustery day. Then 40s on Tuesday and 50s on Wednesday.

As we pass the first day of spring, and with nothing interesting on the horizon, it is just about time to bang the gavel on "big snow" season for New Jersey. The climatological probability of seeing big, blockbuster snow storms goes way down beyond the equinox. Having said that, there will almost certainly be sporadic cold snaps and spurts of snowflakes as we head through late March and April. After the winter we just endured, I am just hoping for a tamer and more seasonable spring season overall! (Pretty please...)

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