Forecasters

Forecasters are watching intently for any chance for more snow in Maryland, but there are no sure signs of it in the next week or so. Meteorologists have been eyeing a pattern that could bring Arctic air southward, making temperatures cold enough to support snow. But there has been less certainty about what kind of moisture systems could come along with it. The latest extended forecast discussion from the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center in College Park calls for "a couple quick-hitting winter waves" that could bring snow or ice from the Mississippi Valley to the northern mid-Atlantic next week.

Clouds are expected to remain over the area with chances for showers Friday, with temperatures in the 60s in the Baltimore area, according to the National Weather Service. Temperatures are forecast to fall throughout the day, from the upper 60s in the morning to the 50s by late Friday night.  Storms that were expected to pass through overnight as a cold front approaches should meanwhile bring a drop in humidity. Gusty winds are expected throughout the day, with 15-20 mph breezes and up to 30 mph gusts.

Even as winter-weary Marylanders continued to dig out from under the weekend's blizzard, weather forecasters warned that another storm is bearing down on them Tuesday and Wednesday with at least 5 more inches of snow. "We're not looking, certainly, at anything as significant as what we just had. But we are looking at the potential for winter-storm-watch-criteria snowfall," said National Weather Service meteorologist Bryan Jackson. Those criteria start at 5 inches, and that's as far as the weather service could go on Sunday.

Scattered storms are expected throughout the day Thursday in the Baltimore area, with highs around 80 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. The storms are part of the same system that brought tornadoes across the central U.S. earlier this week, including an EF-5 tornado in Moore, Okla., but they are not expected to be nearly as dangerous here. Storms are most likely from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m., according to a weather service hazardous weather outlook.  Winds of 15-20 mph are expected, with stronger gusts possible if storms intensify.

Hurricane Isaac was battering the greater New Orleans area Wednesday morning , but meanwhile, forecasters are watching two other developing storms. One doesn't appear likely to impact land. Wind speeds became sufficiently strong in one storm late Tuesday that it earned the name Tropical Storm Kirk. Kirk was about 2,000 miles east-northeast of the Virgin Islands as of about 5 a.m. Wednesday with maximum sustained winds of 45 mph. Kirk isn't expected to make landfall, but rather spin toward the North Atlantic before dissipating in cold waters, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Forecasters are lowering expectations of a nor'easter's impact in Maryland, canceling a winter weather advisory for northern Baltimore and Harford counties as of 5 p.m. The advisory was in effect through 1 a.m. Thursday, with an inch of snow expected. The advisory previously included Baltimore City, southern Baltimore and Carroll counties and extended through the night to 6 a.m. Thursday. Cecil and Kent counties remain under a winter weather advisory. But the storm has tracked slightly more east than expected, and with a tight gradient of precipitation on its west side, the moisture isn't reaching further west than the Delmarva peninsula and northeastern Maryland, said Jared Klein, a forecaster with the National Weather Service.

4:56 p.m. UPDATE: The National Weather Service's Baltimore/Washington forecast office has revised its outlook to call for a nearly all-rain event Wednesday into Thursday. Meteorologists expect overnight lows in the upper 30s. Precipitation forecasts have also decreased expected snow accumulation , with virtually no chance of 4 inches or more though still decent chances for an inch in Central Maryland. Stay tuned for any more adjustments to the forecast. Original post as of 12:04 p.m.: Forecasters expect a chance for snow overnight Wednesday into Thursday, at least a few inches of it if the air is cold enough.

A high-pressure system over the mid-Atlantic will bring clear skies with highs around 50 Monday in the Baltimore area as a mild spell arrives, according to the National Weather Service. Forecasters had expected milder weather to arrive slightly later, with highs in the lower 40s. But by 9 a.m., BWI Marshall Airport had already reached 42 degrees. A 10-15 mph breeze is expected. A small craft advisory is in effect on the Chesapeake Bay from 1 a.m. to 1 p.m. Milder weather is moving in for much of the rest of the week, with highs around 50 Tuesday and in the mid-50s by Wednesday.

Clouds and mild temperatures are in the forecast for the Baltimore area Wednesday, with highs near 60 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. Forecasters expect it could be the warmest day of the month, particularly with clouds and fog clearing more quickly than expected by mid-morning, according to a forecast discussion from the weather service's Baltimore/Washington forecast office. The month's high so far was 59 degrees on Feb. 15. A chance of showers was expected to linger into the morning after overnight rains.

The region had a taste of a white Christmas early this week, and forecasters predicted another chance of wintry weather on Wednesday. According to the National Weather Service, a storm system will begin moving into the Baltimore area Wednesday morning, starting as a wintry mix. Forecasters predicted a mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain will start falling across central and western Maryland late Tuesday night. Officials predicted it would change to rain later Wednesday morning or early afternoon.

Sunny but breezy and cool weather is in the forecast for the start of beach season in Ocean City, with waters on the chilly side for a dip in the Atlantic. After rainy weather lingers Friday, sunny but cool and windy conditions are expected for the weekend. Highs are forecast in the lower 60s Saturday and Sunday and the upper 60s Monday, with overnight lows in the upper 50s. Winds are expected to be strong and gusty. A 15-20 mph breeze with gusts up to 30 mph are expected Saturday and Sunday, calming to about 10-15 mph breezes Monday.

Increasing humidity and highs around 80 degrees are forecast in the Baltimore area Monday, with a chance of showers or thunderstorms in the afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. A warm front moved over the area overnight, with lows in the mid- to upper 60s. Some drizzle and fog was expected to be possible in the early morning hours. Temperatures were expected to rise into the 70s by mid-morning and near 80 degrees by midday. Relative humidity was forecast to be 50-60 percent during the day with dew points in the lower 60s, a level at which humidity starts to become perceptible for most people.

Forecasters are watching for development of potentially severe thunderstorms across Maryland late Thursday, though the strongest chances for severe weather were expected in Southern Maryland. Warming temperatures are expected to fuel the atmospheric instability, according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center. Temperatures reached 84 degrees at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in St. Mary's County by 1:30 p.m., while it was 77 degrees at BWI Marshall Airport. An area of Southern Maryland and the lower Eastern Shore, along with parts of Central Virginia, is expected to have a 15 percent chance of severe damaging wind gusts.

Weather forecasters are in agreement that warm temperatures are likely for Preakness 2013 on Saturday, but they are mixed on whether there will be clouds and rain showers. High temperatures are expected in the upper 70s, according to most forecasts. Normal for this time of year is around the mid-70s. Lows are expected in the lower- to mid-60s, also a few degrees warmer than normal. But various forecasters predict a spectrum of conditions in the sky -- from partly cloudy skies to possible rain showers.

High pressure is forecast to bring sunny skies and highs in the upper 60s Tuesday in the Baltimore area, according to the National Weather Service. The morning got off to to a nearly record-setting cold start. Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport dropped to 34 degrees about 6 a.m. Tuesday, tying a mark set in 1996. Carroll, Harford, Howard and northern Baltimore counties were under a frost advisory through 8 a.m., with temperatures expected in the mid-30s.

A somewhat muggy day is in the forecast for Baltimore on Friday, with high temperatures topping 80 degrees and a chance of afternoon and evening thunderstorms, according to the National Weather Service. Overnight lows were expected around 60 degrees, with a chance for some early morning fog. Temperatures are expected to rise into the 70s by mid-morning, under partly cloudy skies. Storm clouds could begin moving through in the early afternoon, with storm chances lingering into the evening.

Forecasters have been watching models that show a stormy pattern emerging next week, but some don't expect cold air will stretch far enough south to bring snow to Maryland. It's too early to predict a precise reach of any storm, but a "well organized winter coastal low" appears likely by Tuesday, according to the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center. The chances are best in the northeast, according to the center's forecast discussion. The pattern would bring a change from largely calm weather for the East Coast so far this month.

As if we needed more snow this winter, the National Weather Service has warned that yet another coastal storm could drop winter precipitation on northern and eastern sections of Maryland on Thursday. Winter storm watches calling for 5 inches of snow or more were posted Tuesday from Frederick County eastward and from Calvert County north, plus the Maryland Eastern Shore and all of Delaware. "There is still a high level of uncertainty, some model disagreement, but there is the potential for 7 or more inches of snow" in 24 hours, said Jared Klein, a forecaster at the National Weather Service forecast office in Sterling, Va. "The farther north and east you go, the better likelihood there is. There will be a real sharp gradient [in snow totals]

Rain showers are likely in the Baltimore area Tuesday, with gusty winds and highs in the lower 70s in the forecast, according to the National Weather Service. An 80 percent chance of rain is expected. Showers are expected to be light, with less than a quarter of an inch of rain during the day. Storms are possible in the evening hours, bringing heavier rain, with more than half an inch possible. Winds of 10-15 mph are expected, with gusts up to 25 mph. A low-pressure system continues to move slowly through the Southeast, bringing a southerly flow of warm, moist air to Maryland.