Hurricane Irene

The brilliant sunshine outside the courthouse right now provides a sharp contrast with the nasty weather we anticipate this weekend when Hurricane Irene passes through New England. The storm is in the Atlantic now, working its way towards the Outer Banks of North Carolina. From there, it's expected to bounce its way up the east coast, threatening all major population centers. A projected track I saw on New England Cable News this morning took the eye of the storm right through the Greater Lowell area. Fortunately by that time the storm should be reduced to a tropical storm. Even so, high winds and heavy rain are expected here. Hopefully, there any damage won't be serious.

Here's the latest National Weather Service forecast for Lowell starting with today:

Today: Sunny, with a high near 85. West wind around 6 mph.

Tonight: Patchy fog after 2am. Otherwise, partly cloudy, with a low around 63. Light south wind.

Saturday: A chance of showers, mainly after noon. Patchy fog before 11am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a high near 80. Calm wind becoming south between 5 and 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.

Saturday Night: Showers. The rain could be heavy at times. Low around 67. East wind between 6 and 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between 1 and 2 inches possible.

Sunday: Tropical storm conditions possible. Showers. The rain could be heavy at times. High near 70. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between 2 and 3 inches possible.

Sunday Night: Tropical storm conditions possible. Showers, mainly before 10pm. Low around 62. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 82.