NJ weather: Quiet weather and mild 50s this week

The Bottom Line

A huge dome of high pressure will settle over the mid-Atlantic on Monday. Sinking air will keep clouds, rain, and cold air away from New Jersey for most of the week.

A pleasant forecast. A boring forecast. This post is going to be a short one!

Monday

We begin the workweek with temperatures mainly in the 30s. Chilly, but not too cold. There are some pockets of freezing temps out there.

Fueled by a southwesterly breeze, high temperatures should push into the lower 50s. That is warmer than Sunday, and about 5 to 10 degrees above normal for mid-December.

Skies will be bright and sunny, with no threat of rain or snow. Enjoy the peace and quiet.

Monday night will stay clear, with chilly overnight temperatures settling in the mid 30s. Not-a-freeze for most of the state.

Tuesday

Another bright, dry, pleasant day. Mostly to partly sunny skies will keep highs above normal, even though a flip to northerly winds will try to cool us down. Highs might end up a degree or two cooler than Monday, but I'm still going with lower 50s in my forecast.

Wednesday

Unfortunately, we lose the sunshine on Wednesday, as skies become mostly cloudy. However, a return of southerly winds should push temperatures a few degrees higher Wednesday afternoon. Look for highs in the lower to mid 50s.

There is a chance for a few rain showers Wednesday night. They will be scattered, brief, and light — no big deal, just worth a mention.

Thursday

Thursday could be New Jersey's warmest day of the week, with South Jersey potentially flirting with 60 degrees. Once again, we'll see lots of clouds. And a couple of models hint at a stray late-day shower from a mainly-dry frontal passage.

Friday & Beyond

The forecast gets a little muddled at the end of the week. Our weather will be dictated on what happens to Thursday evening's cold front. If it slows or stalls on top of New Jersey, the boundary will serve as a "highway" for storm systems on Friday and Saturday. So the start of the weekend could turn fairly wet and unsettled. In that scenario, our weather would dry out and temperatures would tumble into early next week.

However, if that front is faster and more progressive, we'll see a quick flip from mild to cool with very little rain.

The long-range forecast turns more active, and therefore more interesting. The final third of December turns markedly colder. That means that any storm system that comes along could produce some wintry weather. Of course, there's a lot of travel and holiday festivities in the last week and a half of the calendar year — but It's too early to nail down any sense of timing.

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