Rain & Rainbows

 

Some strong thunderstorms Tuesday evening produced heavy rainfall across NW Ohio.  Afterwards, there were some rainbows across the Toledo area.  Many of our viewers sent in pictures to our SEE, SNAP, SEND web page.  You can see all the pics (and some video) at www.pics.wtol.com

You can send in your pictures and video to us at pics@wtol.com

August Outlook

 

 

 

 

 

 The National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center has released its outlook for August.

It features below normal temps and near normal precipitation.

As we look at some computer models going out a couple of weeks, we do not see any significant change in the recent pattern.  We will have some warm days, but occasionally see cooler than normal highs. 

The outlook does not imply there will not be any hot weather in August....it just means that when we average everything out at the end of the month, the result will be below normal.

Normal highs during the month of August go from 83° to 78° from the 1st to the 31st, and lows range from 63° to 58°.

A normal finish to a cool July

 

Highs this last week of July will top out in the low/mid 80s.  Normal high is 83°, so this is actually what July should be doing. 

This month will still be in the top coolest Julys thanks to the majority of the month having below normal temperatures.  As of Monday morning, we rank # 2...but the warmer temps will knock that down a bit this week.

One positive aspect of the cooler than normal temps has been a reduction in air conditioning use.  This month has produced only one-third the normal level of cooling needed in a typical July.

Beneficial Rainfall

 

As mentioned before, it has been pretty dry lately, and the rain yesterday into today is making up that deficit.

Rainfall yesterday was steadier east of Interstate 75.  Rainfall amounts via our StormTrack 11 Doppler show rainfall totals 0.25" or less in many areas west of I-75.   Areas towards the Indiana border had less than 0.1" of rainfall.

Locations east of I-75 picked up around 0.50" to 1.00".  Some isolated spots received between 1.00" and 1.50".

Additional rainfall will add a bit to the totals today.  We are tracking another system for Saturday.

No heatwave in sight

July ends next Friday, and as of now, no major warm-ups are in sight.

Our extended computer models which go out through next week show signs of the current pattern repeating in a similar fashion.  Temps look to be near or slightly below normal...so the chance of any 90° weather before August 1 looks slim.

Normal high this time of year is around 84°.

Keeping mosquitos away from your home.

Are mosquitos bugging you?

Try a visit to the American Mosquito Control Association.

http://www.mosquito.org/

Rain Stats

During this point of the summer, we need about 1.00" to 1.25" of rain each week.   Thanks to the summer sun and evaporation, that is how much the soil loses each week.  We need that amount of rain to balance things out and keep everything green.

July so far has had only 1.40" of rain, which is 0.37" below normal.

Our yearly total is 22.88", which is 4.50" above normal.  A lot of this surplus was gained earlier in the year, and that surplus was a bit higher a few months ago.

Coolest July Ever???

If you take all of the highs and lows of the month, add them all up, and then take the average....you get the "average monthly temperature".

Here are the top 5 coolest Julys on record (since 1871):

1. 68.0  --  1891


2. 68.5  --  1965


3. 69.0  --  1971


4. 69.1  --  1967


5. 69.6  --  1962

As of late yesterday, our monthly average temp so far is 67.7 degrees.  That makes it the coolest July ever on record.  There are a few more weeks of the month to go, but unless we see a prolonged period of warmer temps, this month will most likely end up somewhere in the top 5.

Happy Birthday Robert!

 

Ahh….our second birthday in the weather department this week !  (Tara's was on July 14)

Happy Birthday wishes go to Robert Shiels today. He will be off from work this evening, so he can attend YET another Hummel Figurine convention.

If you wish to send Bobby some good birthday wishes, you can email him at rshiels@wtol.com

Cool Weekend Ahead

An upper-level storm system will move across the Great Lakes this weekend, bringing with it much cooler and unsettled weather.

With this system in the area, skies will go mostly cloudy at times with the chance of a shower. There will be many, many dry hours Friday & Saturday…but keep in mind you might run into a couple of showers.

Saturday’s highs will struggle to break 70 in some spots. If we don’t reach 71 on Saturday, it will be the coolest high temperature since July 2.

A gradual moderation in temps will occur early next week. Normal high for this point of July is around 84 degrees.

Here are some previous days with cool high temps:

73 – July 4
69 – July 2
67 – June 11

Earthquake & Tsunamis

Earthquakes & Tsunamis  -- originally posted on July 15

Two significant earthquakes hit near the southwest coast of New Zealand. After the initial quake of 7.8 (at 5:22 am EDT), a second earthquake of 5.8 magnitude hit the same area 19 minutes later.

Also of note, a 5.0 magnitude quake occurred in the Pacific south of Alaska between the two NZ quakes.

This is a link of latest activity. Subtract 4 hours from the time to get EDT (it’s in a 24 hour form, so 13 is 1 pm, etc)
www.earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/quakes_all.php

Here is a link to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center:
www.prh.noaa.gov/pr/ptwc/

Original tsunami warning for NZ:
www.prh.noaa.gov/pr/ptwc/messages/pacific/2009/pacific.2009.07.15.103013.txt

Tsunami advisory for Hawaii:
www.prh.noaa.gov/pr/ptwc/messages/hawaii/2009/hawaii.2009.07.15.103426.txt

El Nino Arrives

 

NOAA scientists today announced the arrival of El Niño, a climate phenomenon with a significant influence on global weather, ocean conditions and marine fisheries. El Niño, the periodic warming of central and eastern tropical Pacific waters, occurs on average every two to five years and typically lasts about 12 months.

Sea surface temperatures along the equatorial Eastern Pacific, as of July 1, are at least one degree above average — a sign of El Niño.

NOAA expects this El Niño to continue developing during the next several months, with further strengthening possible. The event is expected to last through winter 2009-10.

This climate phenomenon has minor impacts on our weather during the summer months, but often has more pronounced effects in the winter. Typically, El Nino translates to a Milder & Drier than normal winter across the southern Great Lakes.

It also has impacts on the Atlantic Hurricane season. Typically, the El Nino phenomena results in below normal or suppressed hurricane activity.