Classes start the fall semester, and the Tigers’ kickoff begins the football season, but the real sign of fall — cool, crisp weather — came to Baton Rouge on Sunday and is expected to stay in town at least until early next week.
 
“I don’t see any significant change in our weather pattern through the weekend and perhaps even into next week,” said Barry Keim, Louisiana state climatologist. “It’s going to be a delightful run of weather.”
 
The National Weather Service forecasts Thursday afternoon’s high of 86 degrees as the warmest temperature expected this week in the University area, while the coolest temperature, 56 degrees, could come Saturday night.
 
Keim, who is also a professor in the Department of Geography and Anthropology, said the hotter-than-normal summer will likely be followed by a warm, dry winter.
 
Sociology junior Dominic Truehart lay under an oak tree in the Quad late Tuesday afternoon during a break from classes and said the weather is a refreshing change of pace.
 
“There’s a lot more people out here today,” Truehart said of his usual spot in the Quad. “Usually it’s empty at this time of day, but I guess the weather brought people out.”
 
Fall officially began with the Autumnal Equinox on Sept. 22 and marked the first time since 1991 a full moon shone in the Northern Hemisphere during the equinox, according to National Geographic News.
 
Elise Bernard, mass communication freshman, spent about an hour Tuesday on the Parade Ground working on biology homework. She said she ventured outdoors from her normal study spots to enjoy the nice day.
 
“I’m hoping it’ll stay like this for the weekend,” Bernard said. “It’d be nice for the football game against Tennessee on Saturday with kickoff at 2:30.”
 
Keim said a cold front moved across Louisiana and into the Gulf of Mexico by Sunday, forcing warm air off the coast and allowing “cold, dry, crisp air right out of Canada,” to cover Baton Rouge. The warm Gulf air will bring hotter weather back to Louisiana as soon as prevailing north-northeastern winds shift.
 
“That front basically divides the cool, Canadian air from the warm maritime air of the Gulf,” Keim said. “But fall is a ‘swing season,’ so we’ll get a little taste of winter or fall weather but then shift right back into the summer pattern.”
 
 
 
 
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Contact Nicholas Persac at [email protected]