The great beginning to the day will feature a fair amount of sunshine, and winds generally out of the south and southwest will be fairly light.

As a ridge of high pressure begins to pull away from the East Coast later on, the southerly wind will be pulling some relatively mild air into the region Thursday afternoon. Therefore, most temperatures will be no lower than the low 70s. In fact, the amount of sun we get will probably play a huge role in determining how warm it will get because clouds should become more prevalent by day’s end.

A cold front, which currently extends from the Great Lakes southward into the Tennessee and Mississippi valleys, is going to be pressing eastward later Thursday night.

Thickening clouds will be followed by a shower or thunderstorm before nightfall — primarily in western Maryland and in northern and central parts of Virginia. Then, as the night unfolds and this cold front begins to pivot northeastward along the I-95 corridor, there’ll be a band of rain following it.

Some of the rain in the Greater Baltimore Area will be accompanied by a thunderstorm overnight, and it may also be heavy enough to cause ponding on some streets and highways.