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A cool front is heading our way this weekend and we're watching the tropics

Cooler air will overspread the region this weekend
Posted at 2:48 PM, Oct 19, 2016
and last updated 2016-10-19 14:51:18-04

Finally!  With Halloween approaching and the fall season well underway, South Floridians are about to see a much needed cool down.  The leaves have begun to change their colors in the northeast, but closer to home at times it still feels quite warm under the October sun.  However, this weekend, a cool front is going to make its way across the region and bring with it, not just cooler air, but also much drier air as the humidity takes a tumble.

The front right now is stretching from Texas all the way up to New England.  Over the next few days it will slowly make its way towards the peninsula.  Ahead of the front, a northeasterly flow off of the ocean will keep our temperatures in the mid 80s.  At times a quick moving shower could affect the area.  The breezes stay up as well.

The cool front should move through by Friday night.  We’re not expecting much rainfall with this system, but on the backside, the dew point will drop from the 60s to the 50s.  That means overnight lows will be quite cool in some spots, mainly near the lake.  You can open the window and let the comfy air in!

Now in the Caribbean, we’re also watching a wave of low pressure that may become our next tropical system.  If it gets a name it will be Otto, the 15th named storm of this season.  Right now this disturbance is centered around 250 miles northeast of the Turks and Caicos.  Latest satellite photos indicate that there is a lot of wind shear and the thunderstorms are not located near the center of the storm, a sign of an unorganized storm.  As a result it should not strengthen over the next day or so, but once the shear relaxes, the storm could get a bit better organized. In the meantime it could bring some locally heavy rain to the Bahamas and some of the Greater Antilles.

All the models take the potential tropical system to the north, and then the northeast.  One of the reasons is the front pushing towards us.  This front will pick up the storm and steer it away from us.  So all in all it’s a win win!