This will be one of NJ’s nicest weather weekends of the entire year

This has been a horrendous weather week so far. 97° on Monday, 101° on Tuesday, 100° on Wednesday, 95° on Thursday. Up to six inches of rain, severe weather, and flooding on Thursday too. The overarching theme this week: Humidity.

The mere fact alone that heat and thunderstorms are gone makes this a "good news" forecast. Add to that the return of sparkling sunshine and delightfully dry air, and we can finally get excited about some beautiful weather with comfortably warm days and comfortably cool nights ahead.

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Friday NJ weather: Looking blah, feeling like fall

We will still feel some residual effects of Thursday's storm system that soaked the Garden State and introduced cooler, slightly drier air.

As of Friday morning, we still have some light showers showing up on radar. Sprinkles and drizzle, really. This will be mainly along the coast and mainly in the morning. They will not amount to much more than drops on your windshield. There certainly will not be any more severe weather or flooding concerns.

It is a rather "blah" start to Friday, with temperatures in the 60s. (I have to check the exact numbers, but it may have been our coolest morning since the 4th of July.) Highs will only push into the lower-mid 70s in the afternoon, due to thick clouds, a partial on-shore breeze up to 20 mph, and our new cool air mass.

That is about 10 degrees below normal for this time of year. Making it feel more like late September (early autumn) than the first day of August.

Hopefully, we will start to see the sun peek through the clouds Friday afternoon.

Dew points are still in the 60s, which I would classify as "moderate" humidity. So not quite dry or "low" yet. We should see another shove of dry air Friday night — that is when the truly comfortable weather kicks in.

Friday night temperatures will probably dip into the 50s across non-coastal, non-urban areas of New Jersey. Cool stuff — you might consider a sweatshirt or light jacket late at night or early in the morning. Especially since we are so acclimated to high heat at this point of summer.

Saturday NJ weather: Sunny and refreshing

Mostly sunny skies. Dry weather. Dry air. And warm-but-not-too-hot temperatures reaching about 80 degrees.

There is one problem in Saturday's forecast that beach-goers need to know about. We will likely have a High risk of rip currents posted, with ocean waves up to about 5 feet. Check out the Jersey Shore Report, posted early every morning, for the latest update. And be sure to follow all flags, signs, and lifeguard instructions.

Also, fingers crossed that Canadian wildfire smoke does not pose any haze or air quality concerns again. At the moment, I do not think it will be an issue — but it is something to monitor.

Other than those important asterisks, Saturday's forecast sounds pretty perfect to me. And much-needed relief after our recent onslaught of heat, humidity, and storms. I hope you can get outside at some point and enjoy this fantastic summer day.

Sunday NJ weather: More of the same

Sunday's forecast trends a couple degrees warmer than Saturday. Let's call it lower 80s. Still with sunshine, low humidity, and a storm-free forecast. Great stuff.

Monday NJ weather: Seasonably warm

On Monday, high temperatures will probably warm into the mid 80s. That is close to this time of year, so it will definitely be warm and summerlike.

But I am loving the dew point projections, still in the 50s. Dry air is a real treat here in the dog days of summer, and makes all the difference between a "nice" day and a "sweltering" one.

Tuesday NJ weather: Still no big weather issues

We will start to see some subtle weather changes on Tuesday, as a weak southeasterly on-shore breeze kicks in. That will cause cloud cover to increase, which will generally bring down high temperatures. We'll be back in the lower 80s or so. It will be another pleasant day.

Our next opportunity for a shower had been Wednesday. But that rain chance looks pretty minimal now. Maybe Thursday instead, but that is dependent on how a system off the coast of the Carolinas develops.

Overall, there's nothing "big" on the horizon. We may have to start talking about heat and humidity again by mid August — not unusual for that time of year, of course. But at the very least, it looks like New Jersey's weather through the first half of August will be very different and much quieter than the hyperactive, hot, and stormy July we just escaped.

Dan Zarrow is Chief Meteorologist for Townsquare Media New Jersey. Follow him on Facebook for the latest forecast and realtime weather updates.