So Long, Summer Heat

The stair-stepping to cooler weather this season has begun. After some brutal late-summer heat over Labor Day weekend where heat index values climbed to 108°, a cold front came barreling into the state to shut that down.  That cold front met a lot of moisture on its journey through the state, resulting in widespread 1” to 5” amounts of rainfall over Green Country.  Many of us hadn’t seen rain in several weeks so this was a nice soaker to settle the dust at the very least (see rain totals attached).

                Tuesday’s cold front was weak in comparison to the one heading our way Friday. A deep trough will be forming over the Upper Midwest which will funnel a modified Canadian air mass into our area. In layman’s terms, the first good taste of fall is coming our way for the weekend with highs in the 70s and lows well down into the 50s and upper 40s. The second attached map shows a computer model projection of high temperatures on Saturday. (It’s almost chilly!) That front may arrive with a complex of rain and storms early Friday. Severe weather isn’t likely, but there is plenty of moisture in the air to fuel the complex as it pushes southward into the state.  Unlike yesterday’s cold front, Friday’s front will dry out the air, allowing for that nice drop in temperatures at night.

                Beyond the weekend, temperatures will be back on the rise as southerly winds return as the Midwest trough in the jet stream retreats to the northeast.  This will again set the stage for warmer than normal temperatures again.  Fortunately, above-normal temperatures by mid-September can mean upper 80s for highs. We can still see hot weather through the end of the month.  We’ve hit triple-digit temperatures as late as September 28^th.  It doesn’t appear those kind of readings will be making a return and cold fronts that send our temperatures plunging every week or two will be common all the way into our descent into winter.

                Thursday will be the peak of the Atlantic hurricane season and aside from a Tropical Depression that poses no threat to the U.S., all is quiet! There are signs that a low pressure in the Gulf of Mexico could organize into a Tropical system next week, but there is no immediate sign of development there either for now.

                Enjoy the cool-down and the fall-like temperatures that continue to settle into the region. Be sure to follow me on Twitter: @GroganontheGO and on my Facebook page!