A nor'easter in late May? Yes, it can happen, and the second half of the week will illustrate that with the Northeast seeing a nasty mix of rain, gusty winds and chilly temperatures. The National Weather Service near Boston bluntly summed up the unpleasant forecast in their discussion Tuesday morning: "A late season nor'easter likely brings a cold windswept heavy rain to the region late Wednesday into early Friday." -The Setup:Two areas of low pressure will affect the Northeast Wednesday through Friday – one across the interior, and another low forming off the coast. It's the coastal low that will eventually become a weak nor'easter as it crawls northward near New England. -Remember:The only requirement for a coastal storm to become a nor'easter is winds coming from a northeast direction off the Atlantic. Nor'easters can range from intense, with snow like we sometimes see in winter, to nuisance ones like this, which only bring rain and gusty winds. (MORE:Nor'easters 101) -Timing The Rain:Steady rainfall will spread into the mid-Atlantic, southern New York and southern New England Wednesday, then across most other parts of New England and New York Wednesday night. On Thursday, the most soaking rain will be in New England and eastern upstate New York, but showers will linger in the rest of New York, parts of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Widely scattered showers might continue in the Northeast into Friday, especially across the interior. The highest summits of northern New England could see snowfall at times Thursday into Friday. -Rain Impacts:Rainfall could be heavy at times, so pencil in extra time if you are traveling. Some locations could see totals of 1 to 2 inches. Localized nuisance flooding is possible, especially in urban and poor drainage areas, but we don't expect a widespread threat. Another area of concern for possible flooding is recently saturated parts of the Central Appalachians, including from southwest Pennsylvania to western Maryland and northern West Virginia. -Wind:Gusts over 40 mph are possible on the New England coastline Thursday, and some minor coastal flooding can't be ruled out from Chesapeake Bay to southern New England. -Keep That Jacket Handy:This weather pattern will also keep high temperatures 10 to 15 degrees colder than average, with highs only in the 50s for much of the region. Eventually, highs will rise into the still somewhat cool60s through the Memorial Day weekend. Chris Dolcehas been a senior digital meteorologist with weather.com for nearly 15 years after beginning his career with The Weather Channel in the early 2000s.
