The National Weather Service forecasts showers here in Cobb County on Friday, March 1, 2024, with a high near 45 degrees.

The National Weather Service has issued a hazardous weather outlook for Cobb County and other parts of the region due to showers that could be accompanied by a couple thunderstorms today which could bring a few lightning strikes. 

What does the extended forecast have in store?

Today

Showers. High near 45. East wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100 percent. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.

Tonight

Showers, mainly before 2 a.m. Low around 42. East wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80 percent. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.

Saturday

A 40 percent chance of showers, mainly before 9 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 64. East wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the afternoon.

Saturday Night

A 20 percent chance of showers after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. North wind around 5 mph becoming east in the evening.

Sunday

Mostly cloudy, with a high near 69. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 15 mph.

Sunday Night

A 20 percent chance of showers after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 55.

Monday

A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 71.

Monday Night

A 50 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 55.

Tuesday

Showers likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 68. Chance of precipitation is 70 percent.

Tuesday Night

Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 54. Chance of precipitation is 70 percent.

Wednesday

A 50 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 69.

Wednesday Night

A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 52.

Thursday

A 30 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 69.

What was the climate like in the latest reporting period?

The NWS climate summary for metro Atlanta has now been updated with February 2024 figures.

In an article entitled What is the Difference between Climate and Weather?, the National Ocean Service describes the difference as follows:

“Weather is what you see outside on any particular day. So, for example, it may be 75° degrees and sunny or it could be 20° degrees with heavy snow. That’s the weather.

“Climate is the average of that weather. For example, you can expect snow in the Northeast in January or for it to be hot and humid in the Southeast in July. This is climate. The climate record also includes extreme values such as record high temperatures or record amounts of rainfall. If you’ve ever heard your local weather person say “today we hit a record high for this day,” she is talking about climate records.

“So when we are talking about climate change, we are talking about changes in long-term averages of daily weather. In most places, weather can change from minute-to-minute, hour-to-hour, day-to-day, and season-to-season. Climate, however, is the average of weather over time and space.”

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The climate report for the Atlanta area for the previous month shows how much departure from the average temperatures that month represents. The average temperature for a date is the average over a 30-year period.

Date	High	Low	Average	Departure from norm	Precipitation
2024-02-01	63	33	48	2.2	0
2024-02-02	70	41	55.5	9.5	0
2024-02-03	62	46	54	7.8	0
2024-02-04	50	42	46	-0.3	0.51
2024-02-05	59	42	50.5	4	0.07
2024-02-06	65	40	52.5	5.8	0
2024-02-07	59	37	48	1.1	0
2024-02-08	56	39	47.5	0.4	0
2024-02-09	63	47	55	7.7	0
2024-02-10	66	56	61	13.5	0.06
2024-02-11	68	60	64	16.3	0.59
2024-02-12	61	49	55	7.1	2.25
2024-02-13	57	41	49	0.9	T
2024-02-14	66	37	51.5	3.2	0
2024-02-15	69	41	55	6.5	0
2024-02-16	65	50	57.5	8.7	0
2024-02-17	57	36	46.5	-2.5	0.01
2024-02-18	53	31	42	-7.2	0
2024-02-19	62	39	50.5	1	0
2024-02-20	62	37	49.5	-0.2	0
2024-02-21	66	38	52	2	0
2024-02-22	70	44	57	6.8	0
2024-02-23	68	54	61	10.6	0.18
2024-02-24	66	43	54.5	3.8	0
2024-02-25	64	34	49	-1.9	0
2024-02-26	73	44	58.5	7.3	0
2024-02-27	73	56	64.5	13.1	T
2024-02-28	75	44	59.5	7.8	0.22
2024-02-29	53	38	45.5	-6.3	0

Climate Almanac for metro Atlanta

This almanac provides information on past climate conditions for today’s date, March 1, allowing a comparison to current weather. 

Simply put, it helps you see what the weather would typically be like on this day, according to historical data.

Daily Data	Observed	Normal	Record Highest	Record Lowest
Max Temperature	M	62	80 in 2017	34 in 1890
Min Temperature	M	42	64 in 1997	19 in 1914
Avg Temperature	M	51.9	72.0 in 1997	29.5 in 1914
Precipitation	M	0.17	1.82 in 1991	0.00 in 2022
Snowfall	M	0.0	4.2 in 2009	0.0 in 2023
Snow Depth	M	–	0 in 2023	0 in 2023
HDD (base 65)	M	13	35 in 1920	0 in 2023
CDD (base 65)	M	0	7 in 1997	0 in 2022
Month-to-Date Summary	Observed	Normal	Record Highest	Record Lowest
Avg Max Temperature	M	61.8	80.0 in 2017	34.0 in 1890
Avg Min Temperature	M	42.1	64.0 in 1997	19.0 in 1914
Avg Temperature	M	51.9	72.0 in 1997	29.5 in 1914
Total Precipitation	M	0.17	1.82 in 1991	0.00 in 2022
Total Snowfall	M	0.0	4.2 in 2009	0.0 in 2023
Max Snow Depth	M	–	0 in 2023	0 in 2023
Total HDD (base 65)	M	13	35 in 1920	0 in 2023
Total CDD (base 65)	M	0	7 in 1997	0 in 2022
Year-to-Date Summary	Observed	Normal	Record Highest	Record Lowest
Avg Max Temperature	58.3	56.2	64.0 in 2017	44.4 in 1905
Avg Min Temperature	38.8	37.3	45.5 in 2023	24.0 in 1977
Avg Temperature	48.6	46.8	54.5 in 2023	35.4 in 1977
Total Precipitation	10.32	9.31	19.24 in 1936	3.04 in 1938
Total Snowfall (since July 1)	T	1.8	10.9 in 1936	0.0 in 2019
Max Snow Depth (since July 1)	0	–	8 in 1940	0 in 2024
Total HDD (since July 1)	1769	2106	3442 in 1977	1356 in 2017
Total CDD (since Jan 1)	2	2	30 in 2023	0 in 2020

Period of Record:

• Max Temperature : 1878-10-04 to 2024-02-29
• Min Temperature : 1878-10-04 to 2024-02-29
• Precipitation : 1878-10-01 to 2024-02-29
• Snowfall : 1928-12-25 to 2024-02-27
• Snow Depth : 1928-12-25 to 2024-02-24

For much more information on the climate in our area, visit the NWS Climate FAQ for the Atlanta area.

What does the National Weather Service do?

The National Weather Service (NWS) is a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The NWS describes its role as follows:

“The National Weather Service (NWS) provides weather, water, and climate forecasts and warnings for the United States, its territories, adjacent waters and ocean areas, for the protection of life and property and the enhancement of the national economy. 

“These services include Forecasts and Observations, Warnings, Impact-based Decision Support Services, and Education in an effort to build a Weather-Ready Nation. The ultimate goal is to have a society that is prepared for and responds to weather, water and climate events.”