BLACK FRIDAY BRINGS BRISK TEMPS: Unleashing a Frigid December Start for South-Central PA

As the last hours of November tick down, south-central Pennsylvania is bracing itself for a chilly blast as Black Friday dawns and December makes its debut.

Weather Conditions: On Black Friday, residents can anticipate breezy conditions that look to dominate the landscape, bringing gusty winds that could reach speeds in excess of 25 miles per hour.

A Cold Front: South-central Pennsylvania is bracing for a cold front that will send temperatures dipping as a frigid blast takes center stage at the start of December. These cooling influences mean residents can expect daytime temperatures to reach only into the mid-40s Fahrenheit, while nighttime temperatures will fall into the chilly lower 30s. In some mountain areas, much more wintry lows can be anticipated with single-digit subzero lows observed in exposed gaps and ridgetops as the flow remains sufficiently fast enough to maintain open cold advection of frigid Canadian air.

Chilly Weekend: The chill that begins on Black Friday looks set to stick around for the weekend, making this December beginning in south-central PA particularly nippy. Although below-average high temperatures have been common this week so that daily records won't break, make no mistake that these mercury marks that have finally made their way into 30s territory are providing a reality check following an extended milder-than-usual autumn. Thus, if trying to decide what to wear, ensure you dress warmly as it can bring some short cold reality for the first December holiday weekend and first winter season holiday here in the Mid-Atlantic — no coat? Think twice about it!

With winter just a stone's throw away, the increasing wind chill will amplify the overall cold factor, as these substantial cold and slightly wind-blown components converge into a full force by this beginning period as we start yet another low barometric pressure cycle passing that brings a lot of ups and a lot of downs, and for some others even more cold!