July Rain Comparison

Here is a snapshot of the difference from one July to the next. What a difference and it's amazing how green the landscape is across much of central and eastern Kansas. Needless to say, the drought has ended for several areas of the state and the lake levels are quickly rising. Look for an updated drought map very soon, but we know the exceptional drought continues across western Kansas. The rains have been spotty here, and some areas haven't had anything at all.

The active pattern looks to continue into early August. It's interesting how the weather works sometimes. With all of the abundant moisture hanging around, it will be much easier to develop rain and storms compared to when you have dry soil and vegetation. So it's possible with all of the available moisture, the rain chances will continue to be quite high heading through August. We'll shall see.

Active week coming up

Just over a month into the summer season and we are still getting rains and just when it looks like we are heading into a lengthy hot stretch of weather, changes take place in the storm track. We will see that happen again this week as the huge high pressure dome continues it's grip on the southwest US. Kansas will be on the northeast edge of the heat dome, and this should keep us in an active weather pattern with chances for rain through the week.

Week of July 22

This type of weather pattern is a challenging one for meteorologists to try and pin down when the rain will move in and when it will end. Northwest flow is how we reference it, because the winds are coming from the northwest and down off the Rockies. Storms that develop off the higher elevations of Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming will have a tendency to roll southeast, but it's difficult figuring out how far southeast the storms will go. But to say the least, we should have at least 3 decent rounds of storms this week. The first could be Monday evening/night, then another Tuesday night/early Wednesday, and more possible Thursday/Friday.

And... it looks like we should see another cool down by mid to late week. Sure is nice keeping the temperatures under 100.

Unusual for July

The clouds and rain shower activity have held the temperatures down across much of the central and southern US. But how bizarre is this statistic? The last time Dallas had a high in the 70s in July was over 16 years ago. The last two weeks of July and the first week of August is (on average) the hottest time of the year with highs in the mid 90s. We've had so much hot weather the last two summers that most of us expected it could repeat.

We do see a shift coming in the pattern for the second part of the week. So hotter temperatures will return. But what may help out is a cold front coming into the area Friday night and Saturday. It may not drop the temperatures much, but it should bring a chance for more rain/storms. Stay tuned.

Unusual weekend pattern

It's very weird to see a storm system go from the eastern US back to Kansas, but that will be the case over the weekend. Here it is Friday morning and the storm over West Virginia will be sliding into eastern Kansas and eastern Oklahoma by Sunday afternoon. Click the maps below to see a larger view.

Afternoon temperatures will be cooling back into the 80s by Sunday and we could see some spotty rains over Kansas as early as Sunday morning. Any rain we get with the low pressure system will be isolated activity and probably won't be anything heavy. But, when you can forecast highs in the 80s for mid July, it's hard to complain about that. Enjoy. Millie (yes, the real Millie) and I will be trying to get some things done today on our day off. Back on the air Sunday evening.

Have a great weekend.

A First for Millie at KWCH

Millie has been coming to the station with me for 9 years, but has only become popular for about the last 7 years. We've gone to hundreds of places together and been to countless school talks. We've even had a few storm chasing adventures together, but now, when storms approach, we spend our time tracking the event from the studio rather than from the field.

But this week was a first for Millie at KWCH. She had her first "evaluation" from the boss. Pretty good marks for a gal that doesn't draw a paycheck and never complains about anything. She's even worked some long nights with me tracking storms well into the night (and had to wait for dinner until after our shift was over)  I'll admit, when my manager handed me the review for Millie, I didn't read all of it until I made home that evening. It's pretty funny. If you have 2 or 3 minutes to waste (Millie doesn't advise wasting time at work), it's a fun read. You'll have to click on the images for a larger view.

For everyone that has emailed, called, Tweeted, or sent a Facebook message about Millie, I have to say thanks. She's of course very special to me and I'm happy that everyone seems to like her presence on the nightly news. We have more appearances coming up this fall, including the state fair (but don't know what days just yet)

Triple Digit Comparison

Here are the numbers for 100 degree days in the summers of 2011, 2012, and the count so far in 2013.

The long range forecast doesn't call for 10-15 days in a row of 100 degree heat, but we will be adding to these numbers as we head through the month.

Summer 2013

We've been getting tons of questions wondering what this summer would be like compared to the last two. It's been difficult to say with any high level of certainty, but if the start of July is any indication, we might be okay. The recent pattern has favored the record heat in the western 1/2 of the country, with milder readings central and east. There is a low pressure system stretched across the central US, and that is largely responsible for dragging in the cooler temperatures. (click on any image to see it larger)

Pattern through Friday, July 5

Next week the pattern will change again, but as it looks now, we will not be seeing the center of the high right over Kansas. Therefore, it is a safe bet that our temperatures will be in check (mostly 80s and 90s) and not so many 100 degree days.

The weather pattern for July 11 showing the excessive heat in the southwest and milder temperatures across the central and northern US. Mild for July would be 80s and low 90s. As the jet stream bends down toward Kansas, there should be some chance for rain.

I know we still need rain, but our chances will be few and far between until the week of July 8.

For the Millie fans, here is another picture of her from the harvest field this year. She's such a trooper. I was in Nashville attending the American Meteorological Society Broadcast conference. I'll be the chairman for 2014 when the meeting goes to Tahoe. It will keep me busy, but I'm pretty excited about serving.