Dier and milder weather is ahead, though
The run of dry weather for New Jersey this week is already over for much of the state and the rain will spread south as the day goes on.
After Thursday, though, drier and milder conditions are around the corner and the weekend forecast calls for beautiful weather.
It's raining across a large section of north and Central Jersey as of 6:30 a.m. and precipitation will begin falling in the rest of the state in the next several hours, the National Weather Service says.
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The wet weather will continue well into the evening before winding down around midnight. By the time it wraps up, parts of North Jersey might have an inch of rain, while southern counties should wind up with about half that amount.
Temperatures on Thursday will be about 5 to 10 degrees below normal -- in the low to mid 50s.
In northwest areas -- where a freezing rain advisory remains in effect until 2 p.m. -- temperatures will climb no higher than the mid 40s. Overnight lows will be about 40 there and a bit milder elsewhere -- the mid to upper 40s.
Friday will bring partly sunny skies and temps in the 50s.
Saturday should be delightful -- sunny with highs in the mid to upper 60s.
There's a chance of rain Sunday but otherwise forecasters are calling for a mix of sun and clouds with temps making it to the low 60s.
UPDATE: As of 10 a.m., the only report of freezing rain in New Jersey was in the Green Pond section of Rockaway Township in Morris County. But the National Weather Service reported a mix of sleet and rain in Bergen, Passaic and Union counties.
Plain rain is expected across most of the state Thursday morning and Thursday afternoon as temperatures rise into the upper 40s to low 50s, but forecasters said some ice pellets could mix in with the rain at times from Mercer and Middlesex counties to areas north and west of there.
NJ Advance Media staff writer Len Melisurgo contributed to this report. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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