Sunny weather expected on Thanksgiving holiday; rain to arrive on weekend

By Melissa M. Werthmann, Globe Correspondent

Many families will battle traffic today, the biggest travel day of the year, but at least the driving conditions will be good. There are no weather woes in the forecast, according to the National Weather Service.

“The entire Northeast is looking good,” said meteorologist Alan Dunham. “From a weather perspective, there are no travel troubles.”

Any Bay Staters traveling to Chicago might have to fight through thick fog this morning, but the visibility is improving, he said.

Showers are scattered across the West Coast, but the weather is not severe enough to cause any travel nightmares.

Boston is expected to warm up to about 50 by the afternoon. Skies are partly sunny, so drivers should have a pair of sunglasses with them on their voyage.

A high pressure system will remain in control through Thanksgiving Day, providing turkey feasters with “quiet weather,” he said.

Temperatures will be near 50 and there will be plenty of sunshine.

“Families can go out and play a little touch football to burn off some of that Thanksgiving dinner,” Dunham said.

There will be clear skies and light winds throughout New England Thursday night into Friday morning, he said.

Black Friday shoppers won’t have to worry about the weather as they hunt for bargains, as there will be mostly sunny skies and a high of 55.

A cold front passing through Massachusetts late Friday night or early Saturday morning will dump rain on the region, Dunham said.

Most of the precipitation will arrive after the front, so New Englanders should have an umbrella handy Saturday afternoon. The cold front will drive down temperatures, which will drop to the low 30s by Saturday night.