Weather! It’s not the heat-oh wait, yes it is…

The heat is already here, and it’s only going to get warmer this week. Stay cool, everyone!

July 18, 2011; 1:06 PM • by Weather Dan

As our beloved Scott Pharr mentioned this morning, “I hope everyone really enjoys hot weather. Because you don’t have a choice.”

Before I tackle the impending heat, we’ve got some action in the tropics. Tropical Storm Bret was named by the National Hurricane Center last night.

Bret, thankfully, isn’t forecast to impact the US mainland, aside from kicking up some heavy surf along the coast. The forecast track has shifted north over the last six hours as well, meaning that Bermuda is now out of the cone of uncertainty. If you have plans to head Bermuda-ward in the next week, you need to continue to monitor the progress of Bret, but know that the current trend takes the storm mostly away from the island.

By the end of this week, I think many Richmonders will be wishing for a tropical storm to blow through. The oven has already kicked into high gear today, and it will only continue to ramp up this week. Temperatures Monday are into the upper 80s this afternoon, and should top out in the low 90s under partly cloudy skies. Overnight lows tonight will only make it down to 70.

By Tuesday, the core of an intense ridge of high pressure will continue sliding east, sending temperatures into the mid 90s. A weak frontal system passing through the area may bring us some scattered showers and thunderstorms – possibly severe – during the afternoon and evening hours, but there’s nothing particularly organized or widespread about these. It will, as usual, be a summer thunderstorm crap shoot. Temperatures overnight will again drop into the low 70s.

By Thursday, the heat will be in full force, and we’ll have several consecutive days of temperatures approaching 100. This plot shows the NWS forecast (green) for the next several days vs. model forecasts over the next week. Enjoy. It’s going to be a very hot week.

July 18, 2011 1:06 PM 3