The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

D.C.-area forecast: Cloudy today before an Arctic blast arrives tonight, and widespread freeze Friday night

Sunday on Capitol Hill. ( <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/94696901@N03/26500490049/in/pool-capitalweather/">Jim Havard/Flickr</a> )
Placeholder while article actions load

TODAY’S DAILY DIGIT
A somewhat subjective rating of the day’s weather, on a scale of 0 to 10.

4/10: Clouds and sprinkles thwart outdoor lunch. Sadly, from now until Monday, I have a hunch that this is the best of the bunch.

EXPRESS FORECAST

Today: Cloudy, slight chance of light rain. Highs: 51-55
Tonight: Clearing, turning cold. Lows: 32-38
Tomorrow: Mostly sunny and blustery. Highs: 41-45

View the current weather conditions at The Washington Post headquarters.

FORECAST IN DETAIL

With highs struggling to make much headway through the 50s today, I don’t like thinking it is the “warm” day of the next several. But a cold blast arriving tonight lingers through the weekend. Low temperatures Friday night could actually challenge records as freezing temperatures spread across the entire area. A warm-up struggles to take hold Monday as rains may preclude much improvement.

Listen to the latest forecast:

Get our daily forecasts on your Amazon Alexa device. Click here to find out how.

Today (Thursday): Clouds are ever present with only a few rare breaks well north of the city. Patchy light rain and drizzle are most likely south of the city but could occasionally dampen much of the area. Winds are mainly calm, which makes highs in the low to mid-50s bearable. Confidence: Medium-High

Tonight: Colder, drier air works across the region, bringing clearing skies. For areas that clear earliest northwest of town, lows may drop to freezing, but for most of the area lows are in the mid- to upper 30s. Northwest winds pick up after midnight, making it feel several degrees colder. Confidence: Medium-High

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the latest updates. For related traffic news, check out Dr. Gridlock. Keep reading for the forecast through the weekend.

Tomorrow (Friday): Skies may be sunny, but temperatures barely respond as cold air pours into the region on strong north winds (gusts of 25 mph+). Highs in the low to mid-40s make one wonder if winter hasn’t come early. Confidence: High

Tomorrow night: Clear skies and diminishing winds set the stage for a hard freeze across the entire area. Lows should be mainly in the low to mid-20s, ending the growing season for those lingering summer flowers. Reagan National Airport’s record of 26 degrees even has a small chance to be challenged! Confidence: High

A LOOK AHEAD

Veterans Day (Saturday) starts out cold, making calm winds a blessing. Sunshine is likely to be filtered as high clouds move in, keeping highs only in the low to mid-40s, more reminiscent of a midwinter day. Overnight lows are mainly in the mid- to upper 20s with lower 30s downtown. Confidence: Medium

High-level clouds are likely to persist Sunday and gradually lower as the day progresses. Highs stall in the mid- to upper 40s. Shower chances start to increase overnight. The clouds at least help to hold lows in the upper 30s to lower 40s. Confidence: Low-Medium

Monday is still hard to pin down, with some models pushing rains off to the east fairly quickly while others keep it waterlogged all day long. Highs should be in the upper 40s to lower 50s but slightly warmer if the drying comes faster than expected. Confidence: Low

Loading...