Periods of rain are expected most of the day Tuesday across the Garden State, before we can enjoy a couple of pleasant Spring days.

Here are your weather headlines for Tuesday, March 28, 2017...

Stormy Weather

Mother Nature produced quite the show on my ride to work early Tuesday morning! As I was surrounded by thick fog, bright lightning flashes lit up the entire sky. Spring in the air? Definitely.

Hopefully those noisy thunderstorms didn't jostle you out of a sound sleep. As of this writing, the main band of morning rain is exiting off the coast, with training showers and little thunderstorms behind it. It's going to be another unsettled day overall Tuesday, before a more pleasant stretch of weather takes over through the middle of the week.

I've gotten myself into trouble over the past couple of days, trying to "over-forecast" this storm system. In other words, I've tried to get too specific about rainfall timing and intensity and temperatures, while the weather has ultimately proven uncomfortably unpredictable. So I'm going to stay deliberately vague this time around.

Expect pockets of fog and periods of rain throughout the state throughout Tuesday. Some of that rain may be heavy at times, with more thunder and lightning possible. I think our severe weather threat will be fairly limited — although if a storm really gets going, there's a chance for some strong wind gusts and/or small hail.

Following one more push of showers Tuesday evening, skies will (finally) begin to clear overnight.

My forecast high temperatures for Tuesday range from 49 in far North Jersey to 67 in far South Jersey. Yup, another day with wildly different weather from the top to the bottom of the state.

Pleasant Spring Days

Skies will continue to clear Wednesday morning, and we'll be treated to a lovely, mostly sunny day. High temperatures will be pleasant, mostly in the upper 50s to around 60 degrees. The only potential weather issue for Wednesday will be a brisk wind, out of the north up to 20 or 25 mph. I'm calling it "breezy" for now, but it's awfully close to being uncomfortably "windy".

Temperatures drop a bit heading into Thursday, but we will enjoy another pleasant Spring day. It will be a chilly morning, with lows around the freezing mark. (Frost and freeze alert for any too-early gardeners!) Thursday afternoon temperatures will be limited to the lower 50s — 5+ degrees cooler than Wednesday, and a smidge below normal for late March.

The Return of the Rain

The nice, dry weather ends early Friday morning, as our next storm system arrives. March isn't quite leaving like a lamb, with an extended period of rain in the forecast.

The wet weather will begin by sunrise Friday, with scattered showers spreading across the state. The rain is expected to become steadier and more widespread through Friday afternoon and evening. Lingering showers will remain possible through late morning Saturday.

But the rest of the weekend (from Saturday afternoon through Sunday) is looking good, as temperatures climb through the 50s with the return of sunshine.

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

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