Looking for More Thunder (And Rain)

No, that's not the roar of thunder you hear. That's the roar of Thunder fans after last night's victory! After that impressive comeback Wednesday night, I have to wonder if those storms over OKC were a good sign of things to come! Back to the weather, those thunderstorms are becoming harder to find as the week goes on. The meandering low pressure responsible for the unsettled weather across central and western Oklahoma is finally settling south of the Red River and becoming less of an influence on our weather.

Green Country has missed out on most of the rain that last couple of days, being on the fringe of this system. If anything, it induced some easterly winds that helped dry us out and keep the air comfortable outside. We saw our fair share of rain at the beginning of the week, and now a good chunk of the state is seeing a bit of drought relief. The map above shows the rainfall since the beginning of the month. Although the majority of the state has seen at least one good-soaking rainfall, there are patches of dry conditions, which are now seen with increasing drought levels, especially in southeastern Oklahoma.

Rain chances will be slim to none for the rest of the week as a ridge of high pressure becomes our dominant weather feature. A return to more southerly winds will drive our temperatures up this weekend to above-normal levels. It will be a great weekend to hit the pool, but a hot one for the Tulsa Tough bike races! Our next shot of rain comes in late Monday as a weakening cold front slides in from the northwest. As is often the case this time of year, most of the upper-level energy will be further north, hindering a widespread severe weather event. Moisture return won't be all that great thanks to some blocking from that pesky low pressure that is drifting into Texas. Still, part of next week appears to be unsettled with several days of possible rain or thunderstorms. A more zonal flow in the jet stream will allow for a couple waves of energy to induce thunderstorms along the stalling frontal boundary next week.

I'll tell ya, the more unsettled our weather pattern can be in June, the longer we'll stay free of the brutal summer heat. Still, the outlook this summer for above-normal temperature remains. Enjoy the relatively cooler air while we have it! Be sure to follow me on Twitter: @GroganontheGO and "like" me on Facebook!