photo by Dawn Gustafson
EAST HARDWICK – All of our high-end weather during the last forecast period occurred within a span of 12 hours on Thursday afternoon and evening. High temperatures for the day reached the upper 80s with high relative humidity. A line of thunderstorms arriving during the 5 p.m. hour brought some gusty winds with localized storm damage east of our coverage area into northern New Hampshire. Even though wind damage was not apparent locally, the moist airmass resulted in areas of heavy downpours. Most rain gauges in our region reported one to two inches of rain from this event, with the highest rainfall total of 2.27 inches occurring in Cabot. The remainder of the forecast period was tranquil until Tuesday, when a renewed chance of severe weather was developing under a stronger dome of heat and humidity with an approaching cold front.
The frontal boundary responsible for the thunderstorms Tuesday evening should be south of the region by Wednesday morning, yielding cooler and drier conditions. Sunshine will be abundant and there will be some breezy conditions from the northwest. A secondary cold front approaches Thursday afternoon with most of the day remaining dry until some thunderstorms arrive by 3 to 5 p.m. Friday will be the pick of the week with clear and comfortable conditions.
A strong area of low pressure developing over the Great Lakes will arrive by the second half of Saturday with some showers and thunderstorms. Some thunderstorms may contain gusty winds and heavy rainfall. The first half of Sunday also looks to feature some rain as the area of low pressure exits New England. Clouds may clear enough by Sunday afternoon for some of the weekend to be salvaged. Temperatures remain below seasonal norms as we wrap up the forecast period. Here is the day-by-day breakdown of atmospheric conditions:
Wednesday: Mostly sunny. Breezy. High: 80. Low: 58. Northwest wind 10-15 mph with gusts to 30 mph.
Thursday: Mostly sunny in the morning. Partly sunny in the afternoon with scattered showers and thunderstorms. High: 78. Low: 50. Northwest wind 10-15 mph with gusts to 25 mph.
Friday: Sunny. High: 73. Low: 51. Northwest wind around 5 mph, becoming light.
Saturday: Partly sunny with increasing clouds. Showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Locally heavy rainfall possible. High: 76. Low: 55. Calm wind.
Sunday: Mostly cloudy in the morning, becoming partly sunny. Scattered showers and thunderstorms. High: 76. Low: 57. West wind 5-10 mph.
