After a record-breaking cold snap, warm weather will finally be moving in.
The D.C. area will see temperatures as high as 86 degrees Friday, the highest mark of the year so far, according to the National Weather Service. The heat is set to arrive only a week after a record low temperature of 34 degrees was recorded May 9 at BWI Marshall Airport.
Even more good news: The warm weather is likely here to stay, according to Storm Team 4 meteorologist Lauryn Ricketts.
“Friday, Saturday and Sunday are feeling more like summer. Temperatures … are in the low to mid-80s,” Ricketts said.
The warmer temps do come with a chance for thunderstorms, though.
“We could have a passing shower or thunderstorm Friday, Saturday and Sunday as a frontal system will hang out near the area, but again, a lot of times it will just turn out dry,” Ricketts said.
Weather service data shows temperatures at Reagan National Airport haven’t reached 80 degrees once this month.
Northwesterly winds have kept temperatures low but the flow of those winds is on its last leg, according to Storm Team 4 meteorologist Chuck Bell. A warm front is also lifting into the area by Friday morning and staying around for the weekend.
The warm-up is overdue for those wishing for an early taste of summer.
So far in May, the cooler-than-average temps from April have stuck around a bit. April finished with an average temperature of 55.5 degrees, over a degree below average. Eleven days into May, temperatures have averaged just over 57 degrees, compared to the month’s 66-degree average calculated by the weather service.
As for even warmer temperatures? The D.C. area could see its first 90-degree day of the year May 21, Bell said. The region’s first 90-degree day last year was May 20.
