Weather! Hot, humid holiday weekend

This holiday weekend is looking pretty typical for summer: hot, humid, and chances of thunderstorms in the forecast this weekend. Have a great Fourth!

July 2, 2011; 10:24 AM • by Weather Dan

If you liked the humidity the last couple days, you’ll have at most one more day to enjoy it this weekend before the near-tropical humidity makes an unsurprising return.

Saturday’s forecast keeps the humidity similar to what we’ve enjoyed the last two days, with temperatures slightly higher and into the mid 90s mostly sunny skies, though a few stray clouds will likely work their way in. However, we’ll stay dry today and tonight, with overnight lows in the upper 60s.

The humidity finally ramps up on Sunday, as the high pressure system responsible for this great weather slowly moves out to sea, and southwesterly flow moves in across the region. That southwest flow bring us a steady supply of head and humidity from the Gulf of Mexico. Temperatures will again climb into the mid 90s under mostly sunny skies, but with the added humidity it could feel as warm as 100. A cold front responsible for pushing the high pressure system out of the area will start a slow approach across the mountains on Sunday, meaning parts of the area will see the potential for a scattered shower or thunderstorm through the afternoon and evening hours, so make sure to pay attention to the sky if you’ve got fireworks or other outdoor activities planned for Sunday night. Overnight lows drop into the lower 70s.

We’ll see more of the same on Independence Day, with a few more clouds overhead. Temperatures will climb back into the lower 90s, and we’ll enjoy another day with both abundant sunshine and humidity. The approach of that boundary coming across the mountains means another round of thunderstorm chances on Monday, and another day of watching the skies around fireworks time. It’s going to be hard to pinpoint where any storms will pop up before they happen, so definitely stay weather aware. Overnight lows will fall to near 70. Temperatures for the Flying Squirrels game Monday (vs. Reading, 6:35pm) will be in the upper 80s at first pitch, and should drop into the upper 70s by fireworks time.

If you’ve got beach plans this weekend, I’ve got a couple resources for you. The first is the Rip Current Forecast from the National Weather Service in Wakefield, which covers the Delmarva south of the Delaware border, Hampton Roads, and North Carolina including the Outer Banks south to Duck. If your plans include Chesapeake Bay, check out NOAA’s Sea Nettle Forecast for expected locations of jellyfish along the bay.

The pattern will continue to stay warm and humid through next week. I’ll have your next forecast on Tuesday.

July 2, 2011 10:24 AM 0