Gorgeous spring day: Highs fall to 70s this week, no rain in forecast
Thursday will be a gorgeous day with sunshine and low humidity.
Temperatures will top out around 81 degrees by Thursday afternoon. Friday will be milder, with highs in the upper 70s.
"Our dew points are very low for this time of year, pushing the muggy meter to refreshing," said WRAL meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner. "Our high in the low 80s is slightly below normal."
- Thursday: Partly cloudy and dry. High of 81.
- Friday: Plenty of sunshine. High of 79.
- Saturday: Mostly sunny skies and gorgeous! Highs in the low 80s.
Temperatures, humidity on the decline
The rest of the week will be slightly cooler and sunny, with temperatures staying in the low to mid 80s.
The humidity will continue to decrease throughout the week. By Thursday and Friday, the humidity won't be an issue – but the break won't last long.
We'll also be in for cooler mornings, with lows dropping into the 50s by Thursday and into the weekend. Lows for the rest of the week will remain cool, staying between the upper 50s and low 60s.
Thanks to low rain chances, it will be a great week to get outside.
The dry conditions stick around through Saturday before more moisture creeps back in.
Weekend warmup on the way
We have a beautiful weekend in store!
Temperatures will gradually climb back up this weekend, with highs in the low 80s Saturday and mid 80s on Sunday.
This break in heat and humidity will not last long. Early next week we are back to a hotter, more humid pattern.
"The dry conditions stick around through Saturday before more moisture creeps back in," said Gardner.
By early next week, we are back to a hotter, more humid pattern.
RDU closes out warmest spring on record
May 31 is the last day of meteorological spring and we closed it out on a hot streak.
The average temperature during meteorological spring was 64.4 degrees, 4.5 degrees higher than average. Additionally, we had 9.6 inches of rainfall this month. While the rain from Memorial Day weekend helped, we finished the season 1 inch below the average amount of rainfall.
Additionally, it was a hotter than usual May, As of May 27, North Carolina had 17 days that were hotter than the average day.
7-day forecast for central NC
- Thursday: Partly cloudy and dry. High of 81.
- Friday: Plenty of sunshine. Highs in the upper 70s.
- Saturday: Mostly sunny skies and gorgeous! Highs in the low 80s.
- Sunday: Partly cloudy. Highs in the mid 80s.
- Monday: Partly cloudy, possible chance for showers. Highs in the upper 80s.
- Tuesday: Partly cloudy, very warm and humid. Highs in the upper 80s.
Prepare for a busy 2024 Atlantic hurricane season
The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season will see 17 to 25 named storms in the Atlantic basin, according to the NOAA forecast. The agency has never predicted a higher number of storms for a season.
The number of named storms is significantly higher than the long-term average and moderately higher than recent 30-year averages, according to Lian Xie, professor of marine, earth and atmospheric sciences at N.C. State.
In 2024, NOAA researchers predict:
- 17 to 25 named storms
- 8 to 13 hurricanes
- 4 to 7 major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher)
The NOAA forecast is in line with earlier forecasts issued by North Carolina State and Colorado State universities.
A combination of a La Niña pattern and record warm waters in the Atlantic Ocean set up the conditions for storms to form, organize and strengthen.
