Boston, NYC, DC, Pittsburgh Temperature Dilemma

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

April 6,2013; 5:09PM,EDT

While temperatures will be on the rise across the Northeast and mid-Atlantic through Monday, how long the warmth lasts after that will depend whether cold or warm air wins an upcoming battle.

The warmth could last through most of the upcoming workweek ahead of the storm set to bring a snowstorm to Denver and an outbreak of severe weather across the southern Plains and Deep South.

Temperatures could soar into the 70s northward to central New York and central New England when the warmth peaks on Thursday.
However, there is also a chance that colder air regains control later next week and the forecast for Thursday will be 20 to 30 degrees colder, even down to Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

How far south a cold front, set to arrive on Tuesday, can press through the Northeast and mid-Atlantic will determine whether the second half of the workweek feels more like the beginning or end of spring.
The cold blast should at least press into northern New England, halting the opportunity for further warming during the remainder of the week.
In this scenario, the warmth would hang on farther to the south across southern New England and the mid-Atlantic until the storm from the Plains ushers in cooler air Friday and Saturday.

RELATED:
Warm Temperatures Wrap-Up Ski Season in the Northeast
AccuWeather.com Forecast Maps
Post Sandy: Is the Jersey Shore More Vulnerable?

AccuWeather.com meteorologists are concerned that a stronger blast of cold air will follow Tuesday's front, leading to a noticeable drop in temperatures as far south as Washington, D.C., by Thursday.
Highs in the 40s and 50s would be common from Portland, Maine, to Washington, D.C., Thursday and Friday, while the 70-degree warmth is suppressed to southern Virginia.
It is possible that temperatures fail to climb out of the 30s one or both of these days across far northern New England.

Along the final resting spot of the cold front, AccuWeather.com Expert Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski stated, "It is possible that a 20- to 40-degree temperature contrast sets up over the same number of miles at the local level."

With that statement, it is easy to see why the Northeast and mid-Atlantic are facing such a temperature dilemma--one that AccuWeather.com meteorologists will be solving in the upcoming days.

A wide-range of temperatures are possible across the Northeast and mid-Atlantic later next week. Photo by Photos.