Highs In The 60s, Then Winter Returns To PA Later This Week

EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA — A spring-like start to the week will give way to a return of winter by the weekend. Highs will be 10 to 20 degrees above early-March averages Monday through Wednesday in the region, forecasters predict.

Monday's high is expected to reach 60 degrees, followed by two more days of highs in the upper 50s.

However, a strong jet stream disturbance with colder air will move into Northeast late in the week, The Weather Channel said. High temperatures will drop into the 40s and 30s Friday and into the weekend.

The meteorological start to spring was March 1. The official spring equinox happens on March 19 — the earliest in 124 years, according to AccuWeather.

AccuWeather's forecast for March says the Philadelphia region will start out with a temperature "roller coaster ride."

"Toward the end of spring, severe weather events will become more frequent in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic,"AccuWeather Expert Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok said.

Philadelphia may be "in the line of fire" for those severe weather events, Pastelok said.

Here is the current forecast, according to the National Weather Service:

Today: Mostly sunny, with a high near 60. Southwest wind 5 to 15 mph.

Tonight: A chance of showers, mainly before 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 45. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50 percent. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Tuesday: A chance of rain after 1 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 59. South wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50 percent. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Tuesday Night: A chance of rain, mainly before 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 42. Southwest wind 5 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50 percent. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 55. West wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.

Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 36.

Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 52.

Thursday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 37.

Friday: A chance of rain. Partly sunny, with a high near 49. Chance of precipitation is 40 percent.

Friday Night: A chance of rain before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 31. Chance of precipitation is 30 percent.

Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 43.

Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 28.