The unofficial start of summer probably won’t feel very summery for some.
Across the southern and eastern areas of the United States, cooler temperatures and widespread showers and thunderstorms are expected over the Memorial Day weekend, according to Frank Pereira, a meteorologist at the Weather Prediction Center.
Several inches of rainfall is possible by the end of the holiday, he said,“especially across parts of southern and eastern Texas and over into Louisiana.”
The Weather Prediction Center said those regions faced the greatest threat of flash flooding through the weekend. Parts of Oklahoma and Arkansas are also at high risk. Mr. Pereira said the threat included the areas around major airports in Houston and San Antonio in Texas, and Lafayette and Baton Rouge in Louisiana, so heavy rain and thunderstorms could cause travel disruptions.
Rain and thunderstorms are also forecast for parts of the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and Northeast over the weekend. Some spots could receive more than an inch of rain, forecasters said. A separate weather system is expected to bring rain across the northern and central Plains, and into the Upper Midwest starting Saturday.
The West, however, is forecast to remain largely dry through the holiday weekend.
Temperatures across the country will vary considerably. In many places, conditions will actually feel cooler than normal for late May, particularly where there is cloud cover and rain.
Across parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, the cooler weather will be a sharp contrast to the early-season heat wave that gripped the Eastern United States earlier in the week. In Philadelphia, temperatures soared to 98 degrees Fahrenheit on Tuesday, setting an all-time record for May in the city. Newark reached 99 degrees Fahrenheit, which tied its highest May temperature on record, last reached in 1996.
But over Memorial Day weekend, the high temperatures in some places are expected to run 30 degrees cooler. In parts of the Northeast, forecasters said daytime highs might not climb beyond the mid-50s to upper 60s, though they may rise into the 70s on Monday.
Farther south, temperatures are also expected to ease somewhat, with highs generally in the upper 70s and 80s. Florida, however, is likely to remain very warm, with temperatures climbing into the upper 80s.
Some warmer weather is also expected to expand from the Northwest as the weekend progresses into the northern Plains and upper Midwest, where highs in the 70s and 80s are forecast.
The West, Mr. Pereira said, will remain warm overall, with temperatures running above average, though not at record-breaking levels.
Here’s a breakdown of what to expect over the next few days:
Friday:
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Thunderstorms are expected to continue across parts of Oklahoma, Texas and the southern Plains, although there may be a brief break in storm activity during the day before more storms develop on Friday night.
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Heavy rain will begin spreading into the Mississippi Valley and parts of the Southeast.
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Cooler and wetter weather will begin replacing the recent heat across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
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In the Rockies, rain and mountain snow will continue, with some wet snow possible along Colorado’s front range.
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The West Coast stays mostly dry and warm, with parts of California seeing temperatures rise into the 90s.
Saturday:
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Rain and thunderstorms become more widespread from the Deep South through the Ohio Valley, Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic.
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The Southeast remains warm and humid with scattered thunderstorms.
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Later in the day or overnight, strong storms may develop across the southern Plains.
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Rain from another system is expected to spread across the northern and central Plains into the Upper Midwest.
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The West Coast and Great Basin will remain mostly dry and warm.
Sunday:
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Heavy rain and thunderstorms are expected across eastern Texas, Louisiana and parts of the Deep South, with repeated storms bringing several inches of rain that could lead to flash flooding.
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Showers and rain are expected to continue from the Ohio Valley into parts of the Northeast. For the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500, Mr. Pereira said there was a risk of showers and thunderstorms.
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Warmer than normal weather is expected to develop across the northern Plains and Upper Midwest.
Memorial Day Monday:
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Storms and heavy rain are expected to continue across the South, although forecasters said the rain might become more scattered and spread farther east toward the Southeast and southern Virginia.
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The Northeast and Mid-Atlantic may begin to slowly warm up again, with temperatures in the 70s.
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The Pacific Northwest and interior West are expected to turn cooler and wetter, as a storm system pushes inland, with mountain snow possible over parts of the northern Rockies.
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The northern Plains and Upper Midwest are expected to get the warmest conditions in the country, with temperatures that could run up to 20 degrees above average.
Nazaneen Ghaffar is a Times reporter on the Weather team.
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