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Snow possible for DC, Maryland, Virginia on Thursday
The D.C. region may follow up a day of record-breaking warmth with the threat of some winter snow coming down on Thursday afternoon. FOX 5's Mike Thomas has your full forecast.
WASHINGTON - Forget Spring – D.C. went straight to summer these last couple of afternoons!
Both Tuesday and Wednesday saw temperatures reach the middle 80s in D.C., a rare feat this early in the year.
In fact, Wednesday's high temperature of 86°F is the earliest on record that D.C. has ever been 86°F or hotter. Mid-80s are more typical of the middle of June in the D.C. region.
Unbelievably, we may follow this day of record-breaking warmth (do I say heat?) with the threat of some winter snow coming down on Thursday afternoon!
A fast-moving weather system is expected to bring periods of rain to the region Thursday with the possibility that the precipitation briefly mixes with or changes to wet snow before ending later in the day.
Multiple weather models suggest that showers develop overnight into early Thursday and continue through the morning hours as a strong cold front sweeps through the Mid-Atlantic region.
Rain will likely be the primary precipitation type early in the day with temperatures likely well into the 50s around the sunrise hours.
As the front passes and colder air rapidly filters into the region, temperatures are expected to fall through the 40s and even 30s during the afternoon hours.
As the atmosphere cools dynamically, rain may transition over to a period of sleet and even some snow by the late morning hours into the early afternoon, starting first in our western suburbs and then progressing eastward into the afternoon as an upper-air trough swings through the region.
The changeover would likely be "rate-based," meaning heavier precipitation could cool the air column enough to support snowflakes even though surface temperatures remain above freezing. A process that we call dynamic cooling.
Because ground temperatures remain relatively mild and the late-season March sun angle is strong, any accumulation appears unlikely, especially in Washington and the immediate suburbs.
However, a few spots that see heavier rates could see a brief grassy coating, which would then quickly melt away once the rain stopped.
We do not anticipate any sort of major disruptions from this potential for winter weather. Ground temperatures are far too warm to hold onto an accumulating snowfall.
Behind the departing system, skies should begin clearing Thursday night with lows dropping to around the freezing mark. Sunshine returns Friday with highs rebounding into the mid-50s.