As many federal agencies shutter amid the shutdown, NOAA can't close its doors, but it does have to halt some services.
The first weekend of October - typically a peak time for leaf-peepers - will feature unusual warmth in the central and eastern U.S. and a bit of a chill in portions of the West. Meanwhile, Florida and parts of the Southeast and Gulf Coast will see a mostly soggy, damp weekend.
"For those fall leaf peepers this weekend, a stark temperature contrast may be felt," the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center said in a Oct. 2 social media post.
How warm will it be in the north-central United States? Temperatures will be a staggering 15 to as much as 30 degrees above average, easily challenging records not experienced in decades, AccuWeather said. Fortunately, humidity will be low so foliage viewers won't have to endure that aspect of summer heat.
And in the West, the chill will be accompanied by several inches of snow in the mountains, which will make for some artistic fall foliage photos for leaf-peepers who venture out there.
Record warmth likely in central US
Temperatures are forecast to soar into the mid-80s and low-90s across much of the north-central U.S. this weekend. "Temperatures in some areas could challenge all-time October records," said Bill Deger, AccuWeather senior meteorologist, in an online forecast.
The warmth will be courtesy of a ridge of high pressure, which will promote above-average to well-above-average temperatures for most areas east of the Rockies this weekend, except for the southern Mid-Atlantic into Florida, the Weather Prediction Center said in an online forecast.
The record high afternoon temperatures and record high morning low temperatures are likely to stretch from the northern Plains into the upper Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes regions.
"Even though the calendar has turned to October, afternoon high temperatures in cities like Minneapolis will feel more like midsummer through the upcoming weekend," said AccuWeather senior meteorologist Dan Pydynowski. He said highs will be between 85 and 90 degrees on Oct. 4.
This late-season heat wave will produce moderate to major heat risk across parts of the Dakotas, Minnesota, Iowa, western Wisconsin, and into northern Illinois, the National Weather Service warned.
Relief from this heat will begin late this weekend as a strong front pushes eastward across the north-central United States.
"A cooler and more typical early-October air mass should return to much of the Midwest by Monday (Oct. 6) and Tuesday (Oct. 7) of next week," said Pydynowski.
Chilly, snowy West
Cooler-than-average temperatures are likely from the West Coast through the Great Basin toward the Rockies as a strong surface cold front pushes inland this weekend, the Weather Prediction Center said.
The strong cold front slowly moving through the Intermountain West and Rockies will also lead to precipitation chances, the center said: Expect rain and a marginal risk of severe weather to push east into the northern/central Plains by Saturday Oct. 4, ahead of the cold front.
Meanwhile in the higher elevations, snow is likely. Winter storm watches are in place across parts of the northern Rockies for possibly several inches of snowfall over the weekend.
In Montana's Glacier National Park, cold, wet, and windy conditions are expected, with east northeast winds in excess of 30 mph, which will lead to concerns for hypothermia, the weather service in Missoula, Montana, warned. The snow could pile up to 10 inches in some areas, the weather service said, leading to "dangerous or impossible traveling conditions."
Soggy Southeast, Florida
The wettest weather over the next few days will be along the east coast of Florida into the coastal Southeast and along portions of the central Gulf Coast, according to the Weather Prediction Center. Numerous showers are expected across these areas, with the heaviest rains likely along the east coast of Florida.
Localized flooding issues are possible, especially in the urban areas along the east coast of Florida, the center said in an online forecast.
Farther west, some rain could occur over the central Gulf Coast, but amounts will be dependent on how much sneaks onshore, with heavier amounts offshore, the prediction center said.