Radar courtesy MyRadar | ？ OpenStreetMap contributors

       * Wind advisory from 10 tonight until 10 a.m. Friday *

       For the first time in February since 2019, Washington reached 70 degrees this afternoon. And it happened under a rather cloudy sky. We can thank strong south-southwest breezes delivering that warmer air. It’s out ahead of a cold front that’s going to bring some rain this evening and a lot of wind overnight. Temperatures will be down significantly on Friday, with the return of wind chills as well.

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       Through tonight: Showers will become more likely as time passes this evening. They should tend to focus north and west until the later evening, though. Scattered showers or lines of showers and perhaps a storm will move through during the late night and into the predawn. Sustained wind from the south will blow around 20 to 25 mph, with gusts of 40 to 50 mph. Some heavier showers could bring down even higher winds. While it will be warm much of the night ahead of the front, lows should make a 40-to-45 range by sunrise.

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       View the current weather at The Washington Post.

       Tomorrow (Friday): Skies may still be rather cloudy if you’re up early. If so, clouds will dissipate pretty quickly. Temperatures will be slow to rise through the 40s and past 50, which means that northwest winds around 20 mph will have some bite. Highs will top out mainly in a near-50 to low-50s zone.

       See David Streit’s forecast through the weekend. And if you haven’t already, join us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. For related traffic news, check out Gridlock.

       Gains in the grains: I jumped the gun in detailing increased tree pollen Wednesday. What were tiny gains in the grains have become notable during this warm stretch. Today’s tree pollen report, from the Army Centralized Allergen Lab, for the past 24 hours indicated 10.54 grains per cubic meter of air, up more than 10 times from the previous value. That’s moderate for area tree pollen, with alder, cedar family, cottonwood, elm, maple and pine making up the early pollinators.

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