Temperatures hit -16 overnight. Cold weather advisory issued for 16 N.J. counties.

Another day of dangerously cold weather is ahead Wednesday for New Jersey before conditions start to gradually improve during an extended stretch without any signs of snow, forecasters say.

High temperatures on Wednesday will remain in the teens and 20s and low temperatures in parts of the state are below zero, the National Weather Service said.

Several school districts announced delayed openings due to the bitter cold.

A cold weather advisory for 16 counties remains in effect until noon Wednesday. The advisory doesn’t apply to the five northeast counties of Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Union. Frostbite and hypothermia are possible if skin is left exposed to the elements for too long, the weather service said.

Two towns in Sussex County – Walpack and Sandyston – reported overnight low temperatures of -16 degrees, according to NJWeather.org, the state climatologist’s office said.

The “warmest” temp just after 7 a.m. is 15 degrees in multiple spots along the Jersey Shore. Most of the state is in single digits.

Temps will climb later this afternoon under sunny skies that gradually become cloudy later. Overnight the mercury will fall back into single digits though wind chill values will be about the same.

On Thursday, the arctic conditions ease a bit with temps reaching about 30 degrees for much of the state and some places in South Jersey making it above the freezing mark.

Highs in Cape May, Vineland and Atlantic City are expected to be 33 degrees on Thursday. Overnight lows will be mainly in the teens with northwestern parts of the state still hanging onto single digit lows.

On Friday, temps will be slightly milder with more of the state getting back above 32 degrees. The weekend also looks dry and sunny with temps in the low 30s on Saturday and the upper 30s to 40 in some spots on Sunday.

Saturday night will be the first time in days where the overnight low is in the 20s in some areas instead of the single digits and teens.

The next chance of precipitation — about 20% — is Monday night.

Current weather radar

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Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.