Great Weekend, Warming Trend for Next Week.

Hope you enjoyed the rain last night. It was nice to have the rain, some lightning and thunder, but no damaging winds. Notice the 24 hour rainfall map on the right, courtesy of the OK Mesonet. The rains tapered off pretty quickly east of hwy 75, maxed out just east of I-35, and then tapered off pretty quickly on west of that. Again, for the month of August, these widespread rain events have certainly been a blessing.

Barring any surprises, this has most likely been our last good chance of showers/storms for at least a week or so. The second map on the right is the QPF map and has the state pretty much high and dry not only for the weekend but through the coming week. This drier pattern and a return to southerly winds for next week also add up to a return to more seasonal, August-like temperatures which means hot and humid. But, the wet soils and verdant vegetation will also help keep temperatures in check. Having said that, keep in mind the combination of heat and humidity will likely approach triple digits late next week. But, we still do not see any indications of a late summer heat wave that would put the actual air temperature back into triple digits.

For this weekend, the very mild conditions will continue with clear skies, light winds, and temperatures dropping into the lower 60s and even some upper 50s by early Saturday morning. Some patchy late night and early morning fog will also be possible, particularly in the valleys. Lots of sunshine through the day Saturday, but a light NE wind should once again hold our daytime highs into the mid 80s. Sunday morning will also be in the 60s, but we should see a few more clouds in the sky which along with a light E to SE wind will once again keep daytime temperatures in the 80s.

Afternoon highs on Monday will approach 90 and then back into the lower 90s for the rest of the week under partly cloudy skies and with southerly winds. That also means our nights will be moderating back into the lower 70s by the end of the week as well. In other words, more typical of this time of year.

There is one potential fly in the ointment as we go into next week. That is a tropical system that may develop in the Gulf of Mexico. Right now all indications suggest it will have no direct impacts on our weather, but still it is something that will have to be monitored.

So, in the meantime, stay tuned and check back for updates.

Dick Faurot