Cloudy, breezy and cool conditions will prevail today through Tuesday, courtesy of our buddy “The Wedge”.

I call this “our buddy” because The Wedge happens pretty frequently in Metro Atlanta. In fact, “The Wedge” settled into our region last week, and it refused to budge over the weekend.

Also known as “Cold Air Damming” (CAD) the Metro Atlanta area is located in the Piedmont of the Appalachian Mountains, which means it is in the southern periphery of the mountain chain.

When a pressure system sets up along the East Coast, it forces -- or “wedges” -- cold air into the Appalachian Mountains. For Metro Atlanta, the “wedge” often sets up when high pressure is located in New England.

Other times, the “wedge” develops when low pressure is just off the coast of New England or the coast of the Carolinas.

This air accumulates along the ridge of the mountains, and it is able to rise high enough to create cloud cover, but not necessarily enough to move over the top of the mountain range. As a result, the cold, dense air oozes or slides south along the mountains before draining in the Piedmont in north and central Georgia.

As a result, easterly winds will continue to push cool air in to Metro Atlanta. Afternoon temperatures will remain about 5-10 degrees below average today and Tuesday, before the air moderates and warms up with the sunshine on Wednesday.

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