Kevin Myatt is The Roanoke Times' weather columnist.

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The first significant rainfall in months not related to a tropical system or clusters of thunderstorms may be only a day away.

Forecasts have taken a wetter turn since early in the week because of a low pressure system expected to form off the Southeast U.S. coast and then slowly move northward.

This low has actually been projected by computer forecast models for more than a week, but recent developments favor a stronger, slower, more western low that will spread rain over our region.

This is a coastal low forming along a frontal boundary, more typical of the precipitation makers we see in our cooler seasons. It is expected to spread rain over much of the Carolinas and Virginia on Thursday and Friday before pulling north for the weekend.

Rainfall amounts may top an inch in many areas, especially along and east of the Blue Ridge.

This coastal low may kick up quite a bit of wind and waves along the coasts of the Carolinas. Gale warnings have been issued and waves of up to 15 feet are forecast.

This is not a tropical system, but one could eventually become a factor in this storm.

A disturbance near Hispaniola may become a tropical depression or even a tropical storm and be pulled northward. At this time, it appears the coastal low and front will actually deflect the tropical system away from the coast rather than absorb it, at least through the time it would affect us.

So it looks like a typical fall rain for us, hopefully the first of many that can help ease the long-term drought. If forecast trends continue as expected for the next couple of weeks, we could also be in for some autumn chill entering October.