The cold air that began to settle into Virginia on Thursday will hang on through the weekend, then temperatures will bump above normal for most of next week.
Chilly northwest winds and some especially cold air aloft will generate clouds again on Friday with a few sprinkles here or there in the afternoon. Both Saturday and Sunday will bring a mostly sunny sky, and the winds will become much less of a concern.
The wind direction, however, will remain from the north, continuing to supply cool air into Virginia through Sunday, meaning afternoons will remain in the 50s and nights will drop into the 30s.
A freeze is not expected, but as the wind speeds decrease for both Saturday night and Sunday night, there may be some areas of frost, so be ready to protect especially sensitive vegetation over the weekend.
Some clouds Monday
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Temperatures will inch back toward normal on Monday, and it will not rain. But the specific cloud cover forecast for the partial solar eclipse in Richmond is more challenging.
There will be a weakening system pushing toward Virginia on Monday, sending areas of clouds — about 10,000 feet high — into the state late in the morning and into the afternoon. Questions remain as to how broad that cloud cover will be and how thick it will be.
For now, it appears it may be just thin enough with sufficient breaks to enable us to see the partial eclipse, but it is far from definitive, and we may not know for sure until Monday morning.
Remember, there will not be a total solar eclipse anywhere in Virginia on Monday. The moon will cover 83% of the sun in the sky during its peak in Richmond at 3:18 p.m., but that still allows a tremendous amount of light to reach the ground.
We should not expect the same impact or experience in Virginia as those in the path of totality several hundred miles to our north and west. Certainly, our sky will be less bright and, ironically, the darker sky may be more noticeable if it turns overcast.
Don’t look at the eclipse
Regardless, do not look at the sun. Whether filtered through clouds or at 90% eclipsed, a tremendous amount of light — including ultraviolet light — gets through the atmosphere and can permanently damage the retinas in your eyes.
Everyday sunglasses do not provide protection, either. If you do not have a special filter or glasses marked ISO 12312-2, use a colander to project the image of the sun onto the ground. Alternatively, you can build a pinhole camera using a shoebox and project the image of the sun safely onto the interior of the box.
The next time a total solar eclipse path crosses the U.S. will be in August 2045. Even then, Virginia will again miss the path of totality. For that, we will have to wait until September 2099.
For the rest of next week, temperatures will be near or above normal, with afternoons in the 60s and 70s. Several weak systems will approach from the southwest next week, keeping a chance for scattered light showers around before a larger system comes through Thursday or Friday with a better potential for soaking rain.
From the archives: Coverage of Richmond’s eclipses since 1854