D.C. area forecast: Rain and clouds continue to conquer; clearing by late tomorrow Posted at 05:00 AM ET, 01/15/2013 Today: Dreary, showery. Colder, still damp and dreary. If it's January, why can't it be snow?. Bah. SPI: 2 → - Still think Friday storm stays south. Sad state of affairs for snow lovers.. Our relentless dreary, dense, overcast overhang dominates today and much of tomorrow, with frequent rain shower chances too. Areas to the far north and west suburbs may contend with some mixed precipitation issues, especially tonight, but no major concerns are expected. Clearing should come late tomorrow afternoon with reasonable weather (for January) by Thursday and Friday. We need to watch a storm that passes to our south late Friday, but otherwise, the weekend seems decent with normal weather before a frigid cold front comes in by Sunday night. Today (Tuesday): Plenty of blah again today as a stalled frontal system sends clouds and occasional rain showers up our way. Highs are colder with mainly low-to-mid 40s expected with light winds from the north. We DO need the rain and today's daytime totals are probably another .1" to .25" total. Tonight: More showers likely tonight and they could be a bit heavier here and there with rainfall accumulations possibly as much as .25" to .5" by morning. Areas to the far north and west see marginal, near-freezing temperatures, opening the door for some mixed precipitation, but no major problems are expected. Lows dip into the 30s throughout the area (but mostly mid-to-upper). Tomorrow (Wednesday): Morning showers are expected with mostly cloudy conditions until maybe mid-to-late afternoon when some clearing attempts to give us our first peek at that star at the center of our solar system since that brief bit on Saturday afternoon. Highs may work into the mid-to-upper 40s pending the degree of late afternoon clearing. Tomorrow night: Turning colder with partly cloudy skies. Lows range from the middle 20s (outer suburbs) to the low 30s in the city. Thursday is actually forecast to be partly to mostly sunny! I am concerned about a dry frontal system passing to our north and the chances for some cloud cover especially by the afternoon. Highs range through the low-to-mid 40s. Thursday night is partly cloudy with lows again from the middle 20s to low 30s. Friday is currently forecast to be in the low-to-mid 40s (seasonably cold) with mostly sunny skies. We still need to watch a storm system that is forecast to pass to our south. It may get close enough to bring some more clouds by the afternoon into the evening or even bring some precipitation (mixed?) toward Friday night. This seems like a very low risk right now, so we'll stick with partly cloudy and cold Friday night with lows from the middle 20s to the low 30s (warmest in city). The weekend looks colder than last weekend, but at least with more sunshine. Highs only range through the 40s although a few spots could touch 50 either afternoon with partly to mostly sunny skies. Partly cloudy Saturday night with lows in the upper 20s to low 30s. A strong cold front could arrive Sunday night setting the stage for a cold Inauguration Day with highs only in the 30s (with more intense cold coming later in the week).