The overall weather pattern is a mild one for the First Coast though clouds Fri. will drop temps. some & brisk onshore east/northeast winds Sat. will bring some cooler air off the Atlantic, especially closer to the coast.
2 main weather features to track during the next week or so:
(1) fast "zonal" upper level flow -- from west to east will spread lots of mid & upper level clouds across the local area along with a fairly strong upper level disturbance Thu.-Fri. This disturbance will spawn a low pressure system along the Gulf Coast not far from Mobile that will then cut northeast across Ga. The heaviest rain will occur near & north of the track of the low pressure, but we'll still get showers & possibly isolated t'storms across the First Coast Thu. afternoon into Fri.
(2) A strong storm system Mon.-Wed. of next week. The parent low pressure looks like it'll head way north of the First Coast but a cold front will slip into the area late Tue.-Wed. accompanied by showers & a few t'storms. There are indications that the front might stall over or near the First Coast which could extend our chances for much needed rain. In the meantime, temps. will jump in advance of the storm with highs again flirting with 80 degrees Mon. & Tue.
A "shout out" to Blue Bell ice cream! They stopped by Action News to scoop some ice cream in honor of "National Weatherperson's Day".
From NASA -- in the Feb. sky: (click ** here ** for video)
February is a great month to spot Mercury, the smallest and fastest-moving planet. It reaches its highest point above the sunset horizon on February 16, when it appears 18 degrees from the sun.
On February 6th through the 10th, catch Mercury and Mars less than 10 degrees above the horizon just after sunset. The moon joins the parade on the 11th as a faint crescent above the two planets.
On February 15 a small asteroid named 2012 DA-14 will whiz by, less than 18,000 miles from Earth. It doesn't pose any threat to us. And it'll be a challenging object to see at magnitude 8. Its closest approach will be over eastern Europe, where it will be evening, and Asia to Australia, where it will be dawn. U.S. observers may spot it -- through a telescope, with difficulty -- several hours later at a very faint magnitude 11.1 at 7 p.m. Eastern and an even fainter magnitude 12.5 at 10 p.m. Pacific.
You can find the latest information on the asteroid's closest approach on the NASA website -- click ** here **.
Far easier to see, and more beautiful, the moon appears to Saturn's lower left at dawn on the third. And the moon and Jupiter appear close again on the 18th
