It’s good to know which areas at this time of year need rainfall for some, where winter drought or lack of rainfall can affect the coming summer. So far, while areas are clearly shown in magenta and orange across the Plains (seeing solid dosages in fact), we see aridity anomalies across the Northeast/ Mid-Atlantic in general. Access to this website is This.

We start at 500mb (18,000 ft), where we look at the main culprit for an amplified, active pattern as we close out April. No wonder we see high latitude containment across Greenland and southeastern Canada (-NAO). To the West, we see another blocking ridge (+PNA) forming west of NA. The result is a developing trench downstream of the Plains and Great Lakes with disturbance of the southerly flow pushing away from the Plains. Then we ended up seeing an unusually long-wave eastern phase and trough.

Sticking with 500mb, but expressing it through spin, we see an extended low across the Lakes region combined with a southerly disturbance ahead. This main trough is now orbiting, deepening, and this now interacts with the southerly disturbance that aligns to produce an Eastern crossing.

On the surface, this means that the primary low initially enters the Ohio Valley and into the Great Lakes Friday through Saturday. Then, as the front crosses the East Coast, another low (with the phase we see above) develops along that front in the Southeast from Saturday to Sunday. This new low will then move northward into the South China Sea, bringing heavy rain and winds from Sunday to Monday. Ahead of Coastal Monday, some rain will linger this weekend, making for a dreary, unsettled weekend despite bringing rain in favor of these areas!

In terms of precipitation, we’re looking at overall 1-3″ rainfall from the Ohio Valley to the Northeast (maybe more locally), with some stronger winds, especially as the coast rises Up the East Coast brings an easterly wind that can allow minor flooding in prone areas along the coast and coastal flooding.

April showers are sure to bring May blooms to the area with beneficial rainfall!

About the author

Armando Salvador

Hello! My name is Armando Salvadore and I am a Mississippi State graduate with a Bachelor of Professional Meteorology and an Activity Meteorologist working in the Private Sector. Stay tuned if you like technical, exotic, and general weather tweets! Also big on long-range forecasting as well! Twitter: @KaptMands