Seattle weather: Showers through Thursday, atmospheric river hits this weekend

Seattle - On and off rain showers will continue through Thursday, as Western Washington braces for an atmospheric river pattern starting this weekend.

Widespread rain impacted the morning commute Wednesday, and showers are expected the rest of the day with temperatures close to average for this time of year. The mountains will continue to see snowfall above 3,500-4,000 feet.

Temperatures will continue to warm through weekend and into early next week. A series of storms will move into Western Washington with the potential for an atmospheric river pattern setting up this weekend and early next week. This could bring two to three inches of rain over the next seven days to parts of the Puget Sound area, depending on where the bullseye is for the heaviest rainfall in this atmospheric river.

Washingtonians are starting to break out of the "big dark." This Friday will bring the first 5:00 PM sunset of the year to Seattle. In just three weeks, the sun will set around 5:30 PM.

The average high termpature for the last week of January is 49 degrees, with record highs in the upper 50s and low 60s. Temps will continue to climb and approach record territory by early next work week.

We will be closely monitoring the potential for river flooding early next week as snow levels rise and heavy rain hits the area. Looking beyond the 7 day forecast, temperatures will likely cool down to below average by late next week.