Tampa Bay residents should keep their jackets on hand longer.
A series of cool mornings this week will give way to a gentle warm-up this weekend. But forecasters say another cold front is already on the horizon after that.
Current conditions are colder than usual, said Rick Davis, a meteorologist with the Tampa Bay office of the National Weather Service. Fortunately, “dead calm winds” keep wind chill temperatures close to actual temperatures, he said.
“We're not going to set any records and we're not expecting any freezes,” Davis said.
Low temperatures were in the 30s and upper 40s Tuesday morning. Temperatures are expected to rise by about 10 degrees on Wednesday before falling again on Thursday.
The weather should return warm on Friday and highs will reach the low 70s once the weekend is in full swing.
But meteorologists say we shouldn't get too comfortable. Another cold air mass will follow immediately after the warmer mass into the weekend and is expected to usher in another round of cold temperatures at the beginning of next week.
This pattern is typical of Florida winters, although onshore temperature fluctuations are likely affected by this year's strong El Niño, Davis said. A strong El Niño usually means fewer hurricanes in the summer and harsher, colder weather in the winter.
Gasparilla patrons will remember a warm, humid day on Bayshore Boulevard on Saturday. Such swampy weather usually indicates a cold front is on its way, Davis said.
“We expect cold fronts as we have seen almost all winter,” he said.
In a social media post Monday, the Weather Service noted that Tampa's high temperature of 58 degrees was cooler than the high temperature of 60 degrees in Billings, Montana.
“We sometimes come in on days where some areas to the north of us are warmer than us,” Davis said. “But they happen for completely different reasons.”
This cold weather is due to a dry and cold air mass passing over the Tampa Bay area. More pockets of dry air colliding with the front are responsible for the cooler temperatures later in the week, Davis said.
