Meteorological spring is here. And it looks like some mild days ahead

Welcome to meteorological spring!

I know there are some solid arguments against marking the start of spring at the beginning of March. First and foremost, traditional astronomical spring doesn't begin until March 20.

Also, if March, April and May are the months of spring, then that means December, January and February are the months of winter.

However, we all know there are many years when March is actually colder and snowier than December in the Maritimes, especially in recent years with our changing climate and warming ocean temperatures keeping us milder for longer in the autumn.

With all that said, for meteorologists and climatologists, the next three months best represent the time of year when the weather is trending warmer and the days are getting longer.

Dividing each of the four seasons into a three-month span based on our civil calendar also makes it much easier for keeping records.

Looking ahead into March

With that rant completed, what can we expect for the first month of meteorological spring?

Despite the frosty start on Friday, there is solid agreement that the first week of March will be warmer than average across the Maritimes.

A dominant southerly flow in the coming days will keep temperatures in the mid-to-high single digits for much of the region.

Unfortunately, the clouds will also be dominant with the chance of showers, drizzle and fog patches in the mix.

We will need to keep a close eye on back to back systems approaching for late week and the weekend, which may include some wintry weather.

Beyond that, there is solid agreement that temperatures will be at least near average, with no pockets of Arctic air looming across North America. In fact, there's a good chance that temperatures will continue above average right through the middle of March.

The second half of the month and the kickoff to astronomical spring is a little more uncertain.

There are growing signals that there will be shots of polar air across North America, however, it appears western areas of the continent will be at greater risk for cold, with perhaps closer to average temperatures for Eastern Canada and the Maritimes.

As for the rest of spring, we all know anything beyond a few weeks is moving into large grain-of-salt territory. That said, Environment and Climate Change Canada's climate prediction system projects that we have a very good chance overall of temperatures finishing above average for March, April and May.