(WWJ) – It's been a little unseasonably warm in Metro Detroit over the last few days, with temperatures feeling more like August than October.
But don't get too used to it. AccuWeather meteorologist John Feerick says it'll "feel more like November" this weekend, with temperatures likely in the 50s and a gusty breeze on Saturday and Sunday, with rain showers possible.
"Just kind of ugly and a shock to the system this weekend," Feerick said on WWJ's Weather Wednesday segment.
But what about beyond the weekend? It may seem too early to start thinking about winter, but AccuWeather on Wednesday released its extended winter forecast for this season.
And Feerick says El Niño looks like it's going to be the "big driver" in the type of weather we'll be getting.
"Usually what that means for our area is below average in terms of snowfall and above average temperatures," Feerick said. "Usually you keep the real frigid, Arctic air bottled up across Canada. Not as much in terms of cold air can come southward and meet that moisture. Right now we're expecting below average snowfall."
AccuWeather says in its full forecast the El Niño pattern is "marked by warmer-than-normal waters in parts of the tropical Pacific Ocean, a counterpart to La Niña, which has ruled for the past three winters."
As for this warm weather we've been having in early October, Feerick says it's not too out of the norm.
"It certainly is not extremely unusual. Three 80-degree days in October is nothing too out of the ordinary," he said, noting we usually average about one per year.
"But looking back through the database, October 1963 had 12 80-degree days. While it certainly seems unusual, in early October you can get these warm spells. We're gonna see the temperature dip quite about over the next few days," Feerick said.
