Ag Weather Forum

The U.S. is about to take a small break from a very active weather pattern that has produced a lot of heavy rainfall and severe weather. In its place, a short, but intense, heatwave will shift through the country, leading to record-high temperatures in some places.

Extremely high temperatures have been forecast to occur this summer but have yet to really materialize in a significant way. Though temperatures have been above normal, they have not been extremely so. However, that is changing. A big upper-level ridge is building over the Western U.S. and the National Weather Service already has heat advisories and extreme heat warnings posted for portions of the Southwest. Temperatures nearing 120 degrees Fahrenheit will be felt in the usual spots in Death Valley but also spread across southern Arizona through Thursday, June 19. Many areas in the region will stay hot through Friday, June 20, though the heat will be shifting eastward at that time into the Plains, where temperatures will be well into the 90s and some pockets of triple-digit heat will pop up from western Kansas through southern South Dakota for a couple of days. The upper limit to the heat may not make it all the way up to the Canadian border in the Plains, but as the heat continues to drift eastward with the upper ridge this weekend, it will likely do so for southern Ontario. Meanwhile, temperatures in the 90s will overspread most areas east of the Rockies this weekend. Combined with high dew points in the 60s and 70s, heat indices are forecast to reach into the 100-110 F range for several days. This heat will shift mostly to the East Coast and Southeast as temperatures slowly back off early next week.

Though the extreme heat will relax, temperatures will still be much above normal for this time of year for a lot of the eastern half of the country throughout next week. Relief will come to western areas and those in the Plains via a strong push of cooler air from the Pacific. A cold front will stall from the Central Plains to the Upper Midwest, providing more showery weather and potential for severe storms. Behind this front, temperatures will fall below normal as the previous heat is extinguished. Farther east, cloud cover and isolated showers will help to keep temperatures from becoming too extreme until the front finally pushes eastward later next week.

Most areas in the Plains will only see about two days of intense heat, while those in the Midwest may see three or four days farther east. This heatwave should be a relatively short one, but its intensity will remind us that it is indeed summertime in the U.S.

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John Baranick can be reached at john.baranick@dtn.com

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