COLUMBIA, S.C. — We are experiencing the coolest air mass of the season, as below-normal temperatures are forecast to continue today through Saturday. However, by the second half of the weekend, an upper-level high will build, setting the stage for a gradual warming trend that will last into late next week.
Yesterday, it was breezy and cool. Temperatures were in the upper lower 60s. The Columbia airport hit a high of 63 degrees.
Today, cooler-than-normal temperatures and dry conditions will continue throughout the day and night. As a surface high-pressure system moves from the Mississippi Valley into the Ohio Valley, dry and cool conditions will dominate.
Temperatures will be a little warmer than yesterday, but still 10-15 degrees below average. Highs will range from the low 60s in the north to the mid-60s in the southern half of the Midlands Tonight, with clear skies and calm winds, near-ideal conditions for radiational cooling.
Overnight lows will be like this morning’s temperatures, hovering in the upper 30s, with some isolated spots possibly dropping to the mid-30s. Patchy frost could form in sheltered northern areas, though widespread frost is not expected.
By Friday and Saturday, highs will reach the low 70s both days, and even though some southerly air flow may develop briefly on Saturday, there is no significant moisture in the region to bring rain or much cloud cover.
As the upper-level high pressure system strengthens Sunday through Wednesday, the dry air will persist. With hardly any cloud cover, temperatures will continue to rise a few degrees each day, and by midweek, they will exceed seasonal averages. Rain remains unlikely over the next seven days.