The National Weather Service forecasts mostly cloudy skies here in Cobb County on Monday, January 15, 2024, with a high near 51 degrees.

The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning for Cobb County and other parts of the region due to an expected mix of snow, sleet, freezing rain, and rain that will continue across portions of north and west today and into tonight.

What does the extended forecast have in store?

M.L.King Day

A 20 percent chance of rain after 4 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 51. Calm wind becoming west around 5 mph in the afternoon. 

Tonight

A slight chance of rain before 8 p.m, then a chance of rain after midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 26. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30 percent.

Tuesday

A slight chance of rain or freezing rain before 8 a.m, then a slight chance of rain and snow between 8 a.m and 9 a.m. Partly sunny, with a high near 32. Northwest wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20 percent.

Tuesday Night

Mostly clear, with a low around 13. Wind chill values as low as zero. Northwest wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. 

Wednesday

Sunny, with a high near 37. Northwest wind around 10 mph, with gusts as high as 15 mph. 

Wednesday Night

Mostly clear, with a low around 21.

Thursday

Mostly sunny, with a high near 49.

Thursday Night

Showers likely after 8 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 33. Chance of precipitation is 60 percent.

Friday

Showers likely before 8 a.m. Partly sunny, with a high near 40. Chance of precipitation is 60 percent.

Friday Night

Mostly clear, with a low around 15.

Saturday

Sunny, with a high near 34.

Saturday Night

Clear, with a low around 18.

Sunday

Sunny, with a high near 41.

What was the climate like in the latest reporting period?

The NWS climate summary for metro Atlanta has now been updated with December 2023 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
2023-12-01	66	47	56.5	6.5	0.15
2023-12-02	67	58	62.5	12.7	T
2023-12-03	69	52	60.5	10.9	0.1
2023-12-04	69	45	57	7.6	0
2023-12-05	61	40	50.5	1.3	0
2023-12-06	54	39	46.5	-2.5	0
2023-12-07	59	32	45.5	-3.3	0
2023-12-08	63	37	50	1.4	0
2023-12-09	69	52	60.5	12.1	0.28
2023-12-10	65	38	51.5	3.3	1.16
2023-12-11	51	33	42	-6	0
2023-12-12	56	33	44.5	-3.3	0
2023-12-13	59	35	47	-0.7	0
2023-12-14	59	42	50.5	3	0
2023-12-15	60	35	47.5	0.2	0
2023-12-16	58	41	49.5	2.4	T
2023-12-17	54	48	51	4	0.01
2023-12-18	58	37	47.5	0.7	0
2023-12-19	47	29	38	-8.7	0
2023-12-20	53	29	41	-5.5	0
2023-12-21	57	32	44.5	-1.9	0
2023-12-22	58	40	49	2.8	0
2023-12-23	67	44	55.5	9.4	0
2023-12-24	65	46	55.5	9.5	0.01
2023-12-25	63	57	60	14.2	1.7
2023-12-26	63	53	58	12.3	0.27
2023-12-27	58	47	52.5	6.9	T
2023-12-28	56	39	47.5	2	0
2023-12-29	45	34	39.5	-5.9	T
2023-12-30	49	34	41.5	-3.7	0
2023-12-31	57	31	44	-1.2	0

Climate Almanac for metro Atlanta

This almanac provides information on past climate conditions for today’s date, January 15, 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	54	73 in 2017	22 in 1893
Min Temperature	M	35	60 in 1932	9 in 1927
Avg Temperature	M	44.5	65.0 in 2007	18.5 in 1927
Precipitation	M	0.14	1.49 in 1966	0.00 in 2023
Snowfall	M	0.0	T in 1994	0.0 in 2023
Snow Depth	M	–	1 in 2011	0 in 2023
HDD (base 65)	M	21	46 in 1927	0 in 2007
CDD (base 65)	M	0	0 in 2023	0 in 2023
Month-to-Date Summary	Observed	Normal	Record Highest	Record Lowest
Avg Max Temperature	53.0	53.6	65.1 in 1907	37.5 in 1918
Avg Min Temperature	34.6	35.7	50.9 in 1907	20.7 in 2010
Avg Temperature	43.8	44.7	58.0 in 1907	29.6 in 1918
Total Precipitation	4.31	2.22	7.52 in 1883	0.00 in 1902
Total Snowfall	0.0	0.5	7.0 in 1982	0.0 in 2024
Max Snow Depth	0	–	3 in 2011	0 in 2024
Total HDD (base 65)	294	306	527 in 1918	95 in 1907
Total CDD (base 65)	0	0	8 in 2022	0 in 2024
Year-to-Date Summary	Observed	Normal	Record Highest	Record Lowest
Avg Max Temperature	53.0	53.6	65.1 in 1907	37.5 in 1918
Avg Min Temperature	34.6	35.7	50.9 in 1907	20.7 in 2010
Avg Temperature	43.8	44.7	58.0 in 1907	29.6 in 1918
Total Precipitation	4.31	2.22	7.52 in 1883	0.00 in 1902
Total Snowfall (since July 1)	0.0	0.9	7.0 in 1982	0.0 in 2024
Max Snow Depth (since July 1)	0	–	3 in 2011	0 in 2024
Total HDD (since July 1)	1091	1296	2180 in 1977	888 in 2016
Total CDD (since Jan 1)	0	0	8 in 2022	0 in 2024

Period of Record:

• Max Temperature : 1878-10-04 to 2024-01-14
• Min Temperature : 1878-10-04 to 2024-01-14
• Precipitation : 1878-10-01 to 2024-01-14
• Snowfall : 1928-12-25 to 2024-01-13
• Snow Depth : 1928-12-25 to 2024-01-13

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.”