A solid 1 to 2 inches of rain would be wonderful, given our impending drought situation.

I'm happy to say you will need an umbrella Monday, as a storm system drags some healthy rainfall through the Garden State.

The rain began early Monday morning in the northwest corner of New Jersey. As of 5 a.m. Monday, a few spots had already recorded a half-inch of rainfall.

Rain will continue spreading south and east through the rest of Monday morning. The rain is expected to be steady or heavy at times. More specifically, the heaviest rain is expected on the front-end of this system during the morning hours. While severe weather is unlikely, torrential downpours may temporarily inundate storm drains and cause flooding of low-lying areas.

Our main area of rain is forecast to exit the Jersey Shore from Monday late afternoon to evening. However, scattered showers and maybe thunderstorms will continue for Monday night and possibly into Tuesday. Skies will finally clear and humidity will drop on Wednesday.

The culprit for the rain is a cold front that will eventually return clear skies and comfortably low humidity to New Jersey. An exacerbating factor is the remnants of Tropical Storm Julia, which has been spinning off the Carolina coast for almost a week straight. There seems to be an atmospheric connection with our rainstorm and Julia, which will enhance (increase) rainfall rates and totals.

Julia will also make the forecast for the second half of the week. the storm finally unhinges itself and slides up the East Coast, another chance for rain could develop by around Thursday. If not, or if the remnant low tracks out to sea, Thursday (and beyond) will be sunny and pleasant across New Jersey.

Dan Zarrow is Chief Meteorologist for Townsquare Media New Jersey. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter for the latest forecast and realtime weather updates.

More From 92.7 WOBM