Long Island weather: Dry and cooler

Get those sweaters and light jackets ready as autumn begins in full swing on Friday as a cold front brings cooler temperatures to the region.

After Long Island experienced a much-needed burst of rain Thursday, the forecast for Friday, the first full day of fall, looks dry and clear with winds gusts of up to 30 mph, Dominick Ramuni, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Upton, said Thursday evening.

"It will be a real taste of fall to usher in the day of astronomical autumn," Ramuni said. "It's going to be markedly cooler than it has been in the past several days. We have high temperatures across the island, mainly in the middle 60s, which is actually the coolest air mass that we have seen here since the first days of May. That just highlights that we are turning the page of summer and go into more of an autumn-like pattern."

The Weather Service said it is monitoring Hurricane Fiona, which is expected to remain well offshore.

But the storm will still have an impact on the region with elevated seas.

A high surf advisory is in effect through Friday evening, Ramuni said, along with high rip current risks. Waves could exceed 10 feet, he said. 

"Swimmers really should avoid the waters if there are any left venturing out to the beaches," he said. " … There's going to be some choppy seas out there."

Saturday and Sunday’s daytime highs will reach the lower 70s, still a bit cool for this time of year, with thermometers sliding into the 50s at night.

Rainfall odds are 40% on Sunday, as a warm front moves through, followed by a similarly rain-causing cold front on Monday, when the chances remain 40%, the weather service said.

Highs should be in the mid-70s on Monday, the weather service said.