A late-December warmup is taking hold across Chattooga County and Northwest Georgia today (Tuesday, December 23, 2025) as clouds gradually thin and temperatures climb into the upper 60s — with a few spots flirting with 70 degrees by afternoon.

Forecasters say this is just the beginning of a very warm, mostly dry stretch expected to last through the end of the workweek and into the weekend. A broad ridge of high pressure aloft is building across the southern U.S., shifting winds to a warmer west-southwest flow and pushing temperatures well above normal for late December.

Wednesday looks especially springlike, with morning lows in the low to mid 50s and highs reaching the mid to upper 70s across much of the region — temperatures more typical of October than Christmas week. In Northwest Georgia, skies may run partly to mostly cloudy at times, but meaningful rain chances remain low.

Residents should also be aware of patchy dense fog potential late tonight into early Wednesday, especially where skies clear and moisture increases.

Looking ahead to Christmas Day (Thursday) through Saturday, the warm pattern continues with widespread highs in the 70s and mild overnight lows in the 50s. Some locations could approach or even challenge record highs from Wednesday through Saturday.

The next better chance for rainfall arrives Sunday, when a developing system and an approaching cold front could bring scattered showers (currently a 20%–40% chance). While confidence is growing in the front’s arrival, it’s too early to know whether storms will become strong — that will depend on how much instability develops ahead of the front.