Much Cooler Air Is Approaching Today - Adjustments

  Blue is in general the current location of a cold front moving down the state. In yellow  is an estimate of  where this frontal boundary will be located within an hour or so after sunset.  The front will then continue through the remainder of the state past midnight 

TODAY: Last day of temperatures in the solid 70Fs for a few days for the most part for North and North Central Florida, with a dividing 70F isotherm for highs to set up across South Central Florida in the days ahead, cooler north of that line. Highs south of that line will remain in the lower-mid 70Fs (mainly along and south of a line from West Palm Beach toward Sarasota, or so).


Cold front moving in with a pretty big pattern change for Florida in regard to the temperatures. The day time highs in the upper 70Fs and lower 80Fs which have been above normal will be cooling to at and just below normal, mainly for the afternoons...for a few days. As can be seen with the image above, the boundary proper between the surface to elevations a few thousand feet above the ground is fairly broad, with clouds moving into Central prior to the actual front proper.


 There are some showers and sprinkles with the front, possibly some gustier winds due to the strong winds aloft associated with the supporting upper level features (troughs) aloft. Other than than, overall atmospheric moisture is really not all so impressive. If it were summer, we would not be looking for rain chances at all today. But it is not summer, is it? Highs today for Central and especially south can get in to the lower 80Fs, but mid-upper 70Fs will be most prevalent in areas not over-ridden by clouds prior to 1PM today.


SW winds will shift to west within the boundary, and become WNW-NW after passage. Atmospheric moisture will slowly dwindle (or dry out) with time, and combined with the cold air influx associated with the front itself, we will be having to contend with an attitude and clothing adjustment, especially during the hours before noon time or around 11AM in coming days. 


Lows in the mid-upper 40Fs Central/North Central, and yet cooler still North Florida, except closer to 50F from Cape Canaveral and South toward the immediate coast along and mainly east of US1. Winds not too terribly strong, but it will be cooler on Wednesday through Saturday morning closely reaching the same temperature regime until that time as winds weaken and slowly become more NE-E on Saturday and Sunday. At which point, there is a warming trend.


Outside of this front today, there is yet another to swing through in perhaps another 48--60 hours which will mostly pass through un-noticed other than to prevent what would otherwise be a warming trend. Thus, the longer duration of cooler air. In fact, in the longer range, there is yet another front showing face per the overnight run of the GFS (Global Forecast System) model output.; that too, looks to go through dry. 


Winter is here now for sure with temperatures just below normal , then rising toward near normal, then falling again by later toward late week. So far though, no extremes varying vastly from climactic norms are foreseen. No frost or freezes in the cards. Just a minor attitude adjustment and an opportunity to wear some of the clothes that have been hanging in the back trenches of the closet which have not been needed for much of the season so far. New Years is not posing a problem as of the recent run other than good weather for wearing festive apparel.