Get comfortable with more rain and storms; they will gradually become more numerous in the coming days as a cold front moves in. Once it passes, summer’s grip will loosen.

Tonight & Tomorrow: Afternoon thunderstorms will quiet down in a hurry into the evening. A mostly clear sky will be left behind with lows dipping to the lower 70s by morning. The weather will be on repeat Tuesday, with humid conditions, highs in the low 90s, and isolated thunderstorms in the heat of the day. Don’t expect a washout, but a handful will come across heavy rain at some point — so keep rain gear close.

The Next Impact: A large storm system will move across the country by midweek, sending a cold front toward the Gulf Coast. The front will approach the local area on Wednesday. In turn, expect clouds to increase in addition to an uptick in showers and thunderstorms. Scattered activity will develop on Wednesday afternoon, with the coverage becoming more numerous to perhaps widespread on Thursday. The nighttime stretch won’t be safe from rain either, all thanks to the nearby front. Storm chances will linger until the front clears the area, which looks to happen sometime on Thursday.

Most will pick up 1-2” of rain in the Wednesday-Thursday timeframe. At the very least, this should offset that amount of moisture lost from the ground this week via “evapotranspiration.” While not a drought-buster, this week’s rain will help it from expanding too much in the short term. A strong to severe thunderstorm is not out of the question either. Impacts appear limited to the occasional damaging wind gust, which would still be spotty in nature.

The Weekend: Drier and cooler air will take over once the front clears the area. It’s worth noting that it will only be cooler relative to the recent warmth — forecast highs and lows will only drop to near or slightly below average. That would be highs in the mid to upper 80s and lows in the mid 60s. Nevertheless, it will be more pleasant over the weekend, so make an excuse to get outside.

The Tropics: Gabrielle rapidly intensified on Sunday night, becoming a major hurricane by Monday morning. The storm will likely maintain Category 3 strength or higher through Tuesday, gradually weakening thereafter. Gabrielle will miss Bermuda just to the east; however, the Azores will need to monitor its progress as the storm could get close late in the week.

Meanwhile, there are two other areas to monitor:

Central Tropical Atlantic – Showers and thunderstorms associated with a tropical wave midway between the Lesser Antilles and the Cabo Verde Islands have continued to increase. Conditions will become more favorable for tropical development on Wednesday, and a tropical depression is likely to form by Thursday. Fortunately, this wave will not affect the Gulf Coast.

East of the Windward Islands – Another tropical wave located about 300 miles east of the Leeward Islands is producing a disorganized area of thunderstorms. Environmental conditions will only be slightly conducive for tropical development over the next couple of days. However, a tropical depression could form later this week as the system slows down and turns northwestward in the southwest Atlantic or near the Bahamas. Again, this wave will not impact the Gulf Coast.