Goodbye Warm Days, Hello Miserable Weather In Northern Virginia

For a few days, record-high temperatures for February and sunny skies had Northern Virginia residents thinking of summer, but it was too good to be true.

On Thursday, temperatures have begun to plummet to be about 30 degrees lower than the record-high 80s seen Wednesday. It gets worse in the evening as rain becomes likely and low temperatures below the 40s are expected.

Rain could hang around for the remainder of the week, putting a hiatus on the early summer we've been hoping for. There's rain in the forecast every day through Monday. It will start to get warmer Sunday amidst lingering rain, but don't expect cooler temperatures to stay away for long.

Want to bask in the record warmth one more time?

The two-day summer teaser was the warmest consecutive winter days for DC, according to the Capital Weather Gang. Temperatures rose to a record-high 82 degrees at Reagan National Airport Wednesday and the upper 70s at all three airports Tuesday.

As for March, it could be a chilly surprise.

After all, a warmer February fooled us when a mid-March freeze followed. Some weather models are predicting the jet stream could turn south, bringing colder-than-usual temperatures back and a slim chance for one last snowfall.

"We will be watching for a southward dip in the jet stream over the Northeastern states during early March," AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok says. "Temperatures are likely to average near normal in New England and perhaps slightly below normal in the mid-Atlantic during early March."

Here's the full forecast for the coming days, according to the National Weather Service.

Thursday night: Temperatures will drop to around 37 with rain before 7 p.m., then areas of drizzle. Chance of precipitation is 80 percent.

Friday: Rain continues with areas of drizzle before 1 p.m. and slight chance of rain afterward. Cloudy, with a high near 48. Chance of precipitation is 70 percent.

Friday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 47.

Saturday: A chance of showers, before 1 p.m. and cloudy, with a high near 60. Chance of precipitation is 40 percent.

Saturday Night: Showers likely. Cloudy, with a low around 54. Chance of precipitation is 60 percent.

Sunday: Showers likely with a high near 70. Chance of precipitation is 70 percent.

Sunday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48.

Monday: A chance of showers and partly sunny, with a high near 57. Chance of precipitation is 30 percent.

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