NJ weather: Still cloudy and unsettled for now, sunshine returns midweek

The Bottom Line

The broad area of low pressure that absorbed the remnants of Hurricane Helen last week is still out there. Until it exits the coast midweek, that storm system will be the main driver of New Jersey's weather.

But it is running out of gas. Literally raining itself to death. So we will start to see some improvements to our weather, especially compared to this incredibly damp and dreary weekend.

Over the next 48 hours, clouds will continue to win the sky, although you might catch some glimmers of sun. Sprinkles, light showers, and mist are possible too, although rainfall totals will be very limited going forward.

The switch will flip on Wednesday, as our weather gets progressively brighter and drier. That will lead to some pleasant weather for the second half of the workweek.

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Monday

Can you believe it is the last day of September? Despite this weekend's wet weather, this will still go down as one of New Jersey's driest Septembers on record.

Monday will be mostly cloudy overall, although I do think you will find some peeks of sun and blue sky along the way.

An isolated sprinkle is possible at some point — but that is it in terms of rain chances.

Temperatures are starting the day around 60 degrees, and should max out close to 70 degrees in the afternoon. Not bad, and not nearly as miserably cool as over the weekend. That is just a hair below seasonal normals for late September.

Monday night stays uneventful, with clouds and maybe some patchy fog. Low temperatures will once again sink to around 60 degrees.

Tuesday

Welcome to October! One more unsettled day, before the switch flips to drier, more pleasant weather.

On Tuesday, the storm system responsible for all this unsettled weather will pass south of New Jersey and head out to sea. Over the past few days, models have sporadically plugged in some steady to heavy rain over New Jersey during this "grand finale". But latest guidance suggests there is just no moisture left — and we will see nothing more than a few showers during the day on Tuesday.

It will still be a return to cloudy, cool weather. High temperatures will come down a little bit, only reaching the mid to upper 60s.

Wednesday

Bye bye clouds, hello sun. The transition to brighter, drier weather will be a slow one. But I am confident you will notice a big difference in Wednesday's weather.

As skies progress from mostly cloudy to partly sunny, it will be comfortable. High temperatures will get stuck around 70 degrees, with an occasional breeze.

I am favoring a dry forecast for Wednesday, as the cold front that sweeps out the "junk weather" will be relatively light. The chance for a shower is low, but not zero.

Thursday

Thursday's weather looks fantastic.

Expect mostly sunny skies and dry weather. The morning will be crisp and cool, likely in the 50s for most of the state. And the afternoon will be nice and warm, pushing into the mid 70s. 80 degrees is not out of the question for inland South Jersey.

The Extended Forecast

Friday will be a repeat of Thursday's pleasant weather, although some clouds may start to creep in late-day.

The weekend is a bit up in the air at this time, as a strong cold front is currently pictured to arrive. That could cause a brief — albeit impactfully wet — period of rain at some point. Followed by some very October-ish breezy, cool and crisp weather. I do not want to dig too deeply into the details of that timing yet. Just know next weekend looks much better than last weekend, overall.

One more note: The tropics are still on fire. (The Atlantic hurricane season does not end until the end of November, after all.) Currently in the basin are Tropical Storm Isaac, Tropical Depression Joyce, Tropical Depression #12, and a pair of tropical waves.

Nothing imminently threatening land, although worth watching — it could be a very active fall season.

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