Yes, it's definitely autumn

Most people describe autumn as cool, crisp days with sunshine in a deep blue sky.

But take a look out the window this afternoon. See those grey skies? Step outside.  Feel that northeast breeze with a bit of a chill in it?

That's how you know autumn has arrived.

A look at the weather map confirms it.  Low pressure is moving up the coast. Gale warnings are displayed along the Carolinas shoreline.  Between 2 and 3 inches of rain are expected near the coast, in places like Myrtle Beach and Wilmington.

It's not a strong nor'easter, but it's a good facsimile. And it's a sign that autumn weather is taking hold in the Southeast.

Here in the immediate Charlotte area, the coastal storm will bring cloudy skies and a few showers through Wednesday night. Temperatures will be held in the 60s during the daytime -- about 20 degrees cooler than those summer-like readings we experienced last weekend.

Tropical Storm Karen was a meteorological bust.  Just about the time that tropical storm warnings and hurricane watches were issued for the Gulf coast late last week -- and I began writing about the threat that Karen would bring to the Charlotte region -- the storm was ripped apart by southwest shear.

But a bit of Karen lives on. Some of the moisture drifted across Florida and formed an upper level low pressure system this week along the Atlantic coast. Now that low is drifting slowly northward, staying offshore but spreading wind and rain inland.  It's a taste of what will be coming later this fall and winter.

By late Thursday and Friday, the coastal low finally will push out to sea, off the Virginia coast, and weaken. Sunshine will return to the Charlotte region, and high temperatures will be back in the 70s. In the meantime, you're getting a chance to wear those autumn clothes for the first time this season.

And there's a chance the kind of weather we had late last week, with highs in the mid 80s, won't be seen around here again until later next spring.