Ohio is closing a warm, dry Monday quietly, with high pressure taking control tonight and no watches, warnings or advisories in effect anywhere in the state, according to the National Weather Service. Early this evening Columbus was still sunny at 69 degrees after an afternoon in the 70s across most of Ohio, and skies turn partly to mostly cloudy after sunset, which came at 6:36 p.m. in the capital. No rain is expected tonight, and the only travel note is the chance of patchy fog in parts of the state late tonight and early Tuesday.
Tonight’s lows fall into the 40s in every region. The National Weather Service forecasts about 43 degrees around Athens, 47 in Cleveland, and 48 in Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati, with Toledo near 49. Skies are partly cloudy in most of the state and mostly cloudy in the northwest, with light winds in most places and a light northeast flow in the north. In southwest Ohio, areas of fog are possible after 2 a.m. around Cincinnati, so late-night and early-morning drivers there should be ready for reduced visibility.
Region by region tonight, northwest Ohio is mostly cloudy with lows in the upper 40s around Toledo, Defiance, Findlay and Lima. Northeast Ohio stays partly cloudy near Lake Erie, with Cleveland near 47 and Akron, Canton and Youngstown settling into the upper 40s. Central Ohio around Columbus turns partly cloudy with a low near 48, and southwest Ohio around Cincinnati and Dayton is partly cloudy with lows near 48, plus that chance of fog after 2 a.m. in the Cincinnati area.
Southeast Ohio has the same quiet pattern, with Athens and the surrounding hill country partly cloudy and in the low to mid-40s overnight, and patchy fog possible before 7 a.m. Tuesday around Athens. The National Weather Service office in Cleveland notes that high pressure returns behind a weak cold front tonight and stays in place over the region through Wednesday, which is why the dry pattern holds statewide for the next two days.
Tuesday is another mild, dry day. The National Weather Service expects mostly sunny skies in central Ohio with a high near 73 in Columbus, partly sunny skies in the northwest with Toledo near 64, and highs in the upper 60s in northeast Ohio, with Cleveland near 67. Southwest Ohio is the warmest part of the state again, with Cincinnati near 75 after any morning fog clears before 9 a.m. and Dayton near 74, while southeast Ohio around Athens reaches the low 70s once patchy morning fog lifts. Winds stay light, turning easterly at about 5 to 10 mph in the north.
Tuesday night turns mostly cloudy statewide with lows in the upper 40s to low 50s, from about 48 around Athens to 51 or 52 in Columbus, Cleveland, Toledo, Cincinnati and Dayton. Wednesday follows with partly to mostly sunny skies and highs from about 71 in the southeast to the mid-70s in the southwest, still with no rain expected anywhere in Ohio.
The warmest stretch of the week is still ahead. A warm front crosses Ohio by Thursday, and the National Weather Service forecasts sunny to mostly sunny skies with highs in the mid to upper 70s, from about 75 in Toledo and Athens to 76 in Columbus and Cleveland, 77 in Dayton and 78 in Cincinnati. Northern Ohio picks up a slight chance of rain showers Thursday night, and Friday stays partly to mostly sunny with highs from about 70 in the north to the upper 70s in the southwest. Beyond that, the next broader chance of rain arrives late Saturday night into Sunday, November 1, so Halloween weekend plans get a mostly dry Saturday before showers become possible to close the weekend.
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