'Going to be kind of milder': Warm temps in forecast for the time change this weekend
One thing's for certain: there won't be any snow on the ground when Ohioans set their clocks back one hour this weekend.
Daylight saving time ends 2 a.m. Sunday when the time jumps back one hour. The clocks will spring forward again by one hour on March 10.
Coincidentally, the region's cold spell has also expired with an influx of warm air that has already raised thermometers about 10 degrees.
Freezing temperatures are gone for at least a week, according to Jim Sullivan, a meteorologist who works in the Cleveland office of the National Weather Service.
"It's going to be kind of a milder trend here over the next few days," Sullivan said.
'We're looking at upper 50s'
Wednesday's high across North Central Ohio was in the mid 30s. By Thursday afternoon, those temperatures had climbed to the mid 40s.
The forecast predicted Friday afternoon would be in the mid 50s.
"Saturday, Sunday and Monday kind of look like the warmest days," Sullivan said. "So over the weekend and then into Monday we're looking at upper 50s."
Some portions of northern Ohio could even see highs approaching the mid 60s by Monday afternoon.
Even the overnight lows won't be too harsh the next several days.
"It should stay above freezing," Sullivan said. "Through Tuesday night, your low temperatures look like they'll be in the 40s."
Another cold air system is expected to make its way into the region sometime Tuesday.
"Right now for Wednesday next week we have high temperatures in Mansfield in the upper 40s," Sullivan said. "Wednesday night and Thursday night you'll have some lows in the 30s again."
Shortest day of the year will be Dec. 21
This weekend's time adjustment will make the mornings brighter and the evenings darker.
The Ohio sun will rise at 8:04 a.m. Saturday and set at 6:26 p.m., according to timeanddate.com.
After the time change, sunrise will be 7:05 a.m. Sunday and sunset 5:25 p.m.
Sunday's sky will be illuminated for 10 hours, 19 minutes and 57 seconds, two minutes and 14 seconds less than Saturday and two minutes 12 seconds longer than Monday.
The sun was in the air for 15 hours and one minute on June 21, the summer solstice.
By winter solstice, Dec. 21, the sun's daylength will be only nine hours and 20 minutes. That's the shortest day of year.
The earliest sunsets of 5:06 p.m. take place in Ohio from Dec. 4 to Dec. 11. After that, the nights get longer again but the mornings continue to shrink. The latest sunrises of 7:53 a.m. come from Dec. 30 to Jan. 11.
Sunshine Protection Act has stalled in congress
A congressional effort has been in the works to get rid of the twice yearly time changes, according to an article published on NorthJersey.com.
The Sunshine Protection Act passed the Senate by unanimous consent on March 15, 2022. The bill, introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio, would eliminate the changing of clocks to standard time for the months of November to March. If it is enacted, we would have DST all year, instead of only eight months.
The bill has been stalled, though. It did not pass the U.S. House of Representatives, and a 2023 version has seen no movement.
Some state lawmakers want Ohio to move permanently to daylight saving time, the Columbus Dispatch has reported.
Lawmakers are backing Concurrent Resolution 7, which would urge Congress to enact the Sunshine Uniformity Act of 2023.
The legislation would permanently move Ohio to daylight saving time. H.C.R. 7 was passed by the House State and Local Government Committee on Tuesday.
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This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Daylight saving time ends this weekend, which is forecast to be warm
