Seattle weather: Rain on way, clouds to block northern lights view

Fall seems eager to begin this week, stealing the last few days of summer and turning them cool, cloudy and showery. 

The first rainmaking system moved through the region Monday before the sun peeked out in the afternoon and temperatures halted in the 60s across the region, according to the National Weather Service.

The next system, wetter than the previous, is expected to move inland Tuesday afternoon and linger through the night. Most areas will see raindrops, while a quarter of an inch of rainfall is expected in the north and central Cascades, the weather service said.

Although clouds could block our view, the northern lights were expected to make an appearance, dancing low across the horizon Monday and Tuesday nights along the states bordering Canada, according to information from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The Kp-index, or planetary index, which is a system of measuring aurora strength running from 0 to 9, was expected to be at 6 on Monday and 4 on Tuesday in North America, according to NOAA. 

A Kp in the range of 3 to 5 means an aurora will be “quite pleasing to look at,” if you’re in the right place, according to the National Weather Service. Any occurrence above 5 is considered a geomagnetic storm.

If you’re in an area free of clouds, the Space Weather Prediction Center anticipates the best viewing times for those in range are between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m.

Wednesday is expected to bring a few more lingering showers — mainly in the morning, in the central Puget Sound area and the Cascades — as the weather system departs the region.

“We’ll start the drying process once again as we get into Wednesday afternoon, but it’ll stay on the cool side,” Dustin Guy, a meteorologist with the weather service in Seattle, said Monday morning.

Highs are expected to continue to max out in the 60s.

The latter half of the week looks to be more dry and mild.

The region should see clear and sunny skies with warmer temperatures as highs reach the lower 70s Thursday and Friday, according to the weather service.

As the first day of fall arrives on Saturday, “there’s still some question of how the forecast is going to pan out right now,” Guy said.

“We have at least a chance of some rain as we get into the weekend, but the chances, the confidence and the details this far out are still kind of iffy.”