Forecast Brings a Return to Winter

Reality in January isn't temperatures in the 50s or even 60s. "Normal" is highs in the 30s to around 40, which is the air that's more likely in our cards over the coming days.

A cold front slides on through during the course of Monday and begins the downward descent in temperatures, with our temperatures dropping from the upper half of the 50s on Monday morning to lower 30s around the region by Tuesday morning.

Along with the frontal passage, a wave of energy will push northeast along the front and spread light rain and, perhaps, some light snow along with it. Given the push of the front southeast through the region, the shield of light rain and snow may miss the northwest 'burbs of Philadelphia but be better confined to South Jersey and Delaware.

In any event, any amount of snow that falls on early Tuesday will likely be modest. If it falls as snow, expect an inch or two of accumulation at most.

A second wave could graze parts of the region on Tuesday night into early Wednesday with light snow showers or rain showers but, again, modest is the key word with anything that falls. The balance of Wednesday and Thursday look decent but more typical in terms of January weather, with highs in the 40s as opposed to the relative warmth of last week.  

Friday and beyond, however, pose a potential temperature yo-yo. A cold front could shoot through on Thursday night, setting us up for a chilly Friday (upper 30s) and a seasonal Saturday. Longer range computer modeling suggests that a colder shot of air lurks for the 21st-23rd timeframe, with temperatures possibly hitting the coldest levels of the winter at night. Teens for lows, highs struggling to reach 30 seem to be a decent possibility in about eight to ten days time.

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Tom Thunstrom is the editor and publisher of Phillyweather.net. You can also follow Phillyweather.net on twitter at @phillywx or on Facebook.