Long Island weather: Sunny and warmer Thursday with wet Saturday

More sunshine is expected Thursday, when the temperature will continue its gradual climb toward the 50s by the weekend, forecasters said.

Southwesterly winds, brought by a high pressure system off the Mid-Atlantic coast, will slowly raise thermometers through the week, the National Weather Service said.

Wednesday’s daytime high of 46 degrees will be a mirror image of Thursday, with Friday's predicted high at 49 and Saturday's at 53, the weather service said. Sunday's high of 54 is about 10 degrees above normal. Highs will also be in the low 50s Monday and Tuesday.

Wednesday's forecasted low at night of 32 degrees will be about the chilliest, with nighttime temperatures climbing to the upper 30s throughout the week.

That surprising warmth, the weather service’s Weather Prediction Center said, stems from some of the same factors expected to thaw the blizzard-devastated swaths of the nation, as winds arising in the Gulf of Mexico “quickly kick out any lingering arctic air.”

Rainy New Year's Eve

No snow plows should be needed in the tri-state area for the coming end-of-the-year storm.

“Confidence continues to be high in that any precipitation with a frontal system late Saturday into Saturday night will be plain rain,” the weather service said.

“The bulk of the showers look to come Saturday evening into Saturday night,” as the downpours should travel swiftly through the New York metropolitan area, with rain forecast to start after 1 p.m. and last through the midnight revelry of New Year's Eve. 

Sunday, New Year's Day, should be mostly sunny.

A cloud-clearing high pressure system then delivers a sunny Monday.

By Tuesday, however, what the weather service calls another “rain-maker” could arrive, with the odds assessed at 30%.