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A break from drizzle coming Sunday, as the East preps for destruction

C4Chaos
/
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Lots of rain in the forecast, but a surprising break is coming on Sunday - at least if you're north of the Tacoma area.

"A weak warm front is moving in ... and [Saturday] another warm front, a little stronger comes in, probably after breakfast time," says KPLU weather expert Cliff Mass, a professor of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Washington.

Then, there will be a break on Sunday, before yet another warm front hits, says Mass.

"I think it'll actually be a pretty decent day, with temperatures getting up into the mid-50s," he says.

Back to rain by Monday ... and Halloween is still too far out to say for sure.

Even if it's raining, at least it's mild. The mega-storm approaching the East Coast is "the real deal," says Mass.

"The storm we are going to see next week is going to be more 'perfect' than 'the perfect storm'" made famous by the film and book of that title, he says. Everything is lining up for it to hit the coastlines of Maryland, New Jersey and New York.

Mass says the storm is likely to be enormous and devastating. On his blog, he concludes:

"By the way, what other famous storm started as a tropical storm, headed out to sea and then turned westward towards New England at almost exactly the same time of the year? Answer: The 1991 Halloween Storm....a.k.a. the Perfect Storm of book and movie fame. "So what do you come away with from all this? First, you know what it is like to be a meteorologist in a real-world, very serious situation. There is the potential for substantial loss of life, damage, and disruption. Large costs to protect assets. What would you recommend? This is why meteorologists make the big bucks (right!).

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Do you have a weather question? Cliff Mass and Keith Seinfeld occasionally answer reader questions on the air. Share yours at the bottom of our Questions page (you can click on Discussion and see the "newest").

The weekly KPLU feature "Weather with Cliff Mass" airs every Friday at 9 a.m. immediately following BirdNote, and repeats twice on Friday afternoons during All Things Considered. The feature is hosted by KPLU’s Science and Health reporter Keith Seinfeld. Cliff Mass is a University of Washington Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, a renowned Seattle weather prognosticator, and a popular weather blogger. You can also subscribeto a podcast of “Weather with Cliff Mass”shows.

Keith Seinfeld is a former KNKX/KPLU reporter who covered health, science and the environment over his 17 years with the station. He also served as assistant news director. Prior to KLPU, he was a staff reporter at The Seattle Times and The News Tribune in Tacoma and a freelance writer-producer. His work has been honored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the Knight Science Journalism Fellowships at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.