Oregon Fires, Active Central/Eastern Pacific, Local Heat Warnings

 Had several of my friends ask me why do all channels keep harping about "Extreme Heat, Dangerous Heat, Deadly Heat" when back years ago it was just called SUMMER?   Not sure what to tell them as I remember growing up in NW Indiana where my late brother (Jim) and I went to the ball park EVERYDAY no matter how hot.  Mom might tell us "make sure you drink lots of water" (Douglas Park had lots of water fountains), but I never felt threaten by the heat.  Jim & I took many breaks, went to the A & W for a soda pop, burger & fries for lunch (cost less than a dollar!) and never got deadly sick.  We just used common sense.  But here it is from the NWS.

Is it hot?  Of course, but it happens every summer about now through early September where we flirt with 95-100 each day.  Why?  It's called the Summer Heat Dome or an area of upper high pressure that causes sinking air, few clouds and no rain.

Rotating around this dome are disturbances that cause clusters of strong storms to develop.  Until this dome retreats back to our west, we'll see at least 2 more days of mostly dry weather before the "ring of fire" T-Storms bring us some cooling relief later this week.

Look at all the cities that are 100+ at 3 PM. Where it's rained (Chicago, Tampa) note how less hot it is.  It's a rare day in the summer when we have no rain between us and the beaches.

It was so hot down at Grand Isle, we found this Egret trying to take a drink from a fire hydrant.

Oh c'mon now, lighten up.  Gotta think that's funny?!!!  What's not funny are the fires out west creating a smoke plume that spreads out for thousands of miles.

Some of that smoke may work its way around that upper heat dome and reach us later this week.

So let's just use some common sense until this current heat wave breaks down.  At least in our part of the World, the Tropics have gone to sleep. I see three clusters of storms, but no rotation.

It is active out in the Pacific where it's supposed to be active in an El Nino year. There's a Tropical Storm way SW of Hawaii and a weakening Hurricane (Fausto) going north of Hawaii.

 

The real beast remains Genevieve who peaked out earlier today at 160 mph.

Her satellite presentation still looks quite impressive but she's heading towards cooler waters where she'll weaken never threatening any land areas.  Locally, it's all about the HEAT. Stay tuned!

Pacific Stays Active, Atlantic Gone Quiet, Goodbye Grand Isle

After Tropical Storm Bertha dissipated earlier this week, all the tropical action is in the EPAC (Eastern Pacific), where we have 2 hurricanes cranking.  One (Fausto) will brush Hawaii with some high surf, while the stronger one (Genevieve) is already a Cat. 3 and could become a Cat. 5.   The color satellite view gives the classic look of a major storm.

Back over the Atlantic, we have several clusters of storms, but the upper winds will not allow anything to get going.

With so many upper lows (TUTT Lows) in the Atlantic Basin, tropical development is not expected for the next 7-10 days, and that gets us into August.

The other big story this week will be the western heat wave that will extend over us for the first part of this week.

Two things to notice are 1) the number of cities above 100 and 2) the cities with dew points up to 80 (Des Moines, St. Louis).  The only relief for the east will be daily T-storms away from the upper ridge.

No such storms around today. Consequently, temps are mid to upper 90s.

The hottest days, according to NWS will be Tuesday & Wednesday where they have issued an excessive heat watch.  As usual, use common sense while working or playing outdoors.  Finally, it's goodbye to Grand Isle.

I will miss the sunrises, the crowds, the food, and the fishing.  Valerie landed a 2.65 lb trout, and Doc Muller caught 5 sharks, including one over 5 feet.  Despite Bertha delaying the start, the weather turned near perfect, and lots of fish were caught.  Start planning your trip down for next year as we celebrate # 99 of the International Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo.  Stay tuned!