July Weather Extremes

The recent heat wave and dry streak are both being washed away with thunderstorms and heavy rains. The past two days have brought almost 2" of rain to the toledo area (officially 1.83"). This has nearly erased the monthly rainfall deficit for July and helped ease persistent dry weather from June.


The recent rain has not dampened the fact that July may end as one of the warmest on record (currently tied for the 2nd warmest all time). The monthly average temperature up to this point is 78.6°. This is +5.6° Above Normal! In addition, we are on a streak of 8 consecutive days of high temperatures 90° or warmer. The all time record for consecutive 90° days is 11 set in August of 1959.

A New Record...And We're Not Alone!

Thursday was the warmest day in over 16 years for Toledo setting a new record record high...102 degrees!



We weren't alone with record highs either:
Detroit: 100 degrees
Cleveland: 97 degrees

The final total had 55 cities breaking records and nearly 60 additional cities registering a tie for a record high across the Great Lakes and Ohio River Valley. Today the ridge of high pressure, or "heat dome", begins to shift up the eastern seaboard.

Record Breaking Heat Wave

Highs today will soar into record highs for many areas in the Great Lakes Region. An impressive ridge in the jet stream has brought a persistent heat and muggy conditions across much of the United States. The weak atmospheric flow has allowed this pattern not only to develop, but intensify and remain anchored in place.



Slowly this ridge shifts the heat to the east, but until then dangerous heat will remain for our area through Friday. Up to this point in the month, the average temperature has been 77.8 degrees which is 4.8 degrees above normal. The number of 90 degree days or warmer continue to stack up, so far 14 days have been recorded so far! Stay Cool!

Major Heat Wave -- Record Highs

We are in the midst of a major heat wave, scorching the area with what soon could be temperatures that top 100 degrees! The dangerous combination of heat and humidity will push heat index values to 110 degrees and beyond. So when was the last time the Glass City had a temperature of 100 degrees or warmer? Try over a decade ago!



Here are some tips to help you try and beat the heat:



I am expecting more record highs this week, especially on Thursday. The old record, of 99 degrees will likely be eclipsed by tomorrow's expected high which will exceed 100 degrees! Stay cool everyone!

A Very Dry June

After persistent and soaking rain that flooded area rivers and farm fields this spring, June has been a complete 180 to very dry conditions. Here is where the past three months have registered:

April: 6.33" --2nd wettest all time
May: 5.88" --9th wettest all time
June: 0.51" --3rd driest all time

The only years that eclipse this year's bone dry weather in June were in 1946 with 0.27" and 1876 with 0.12" of precipitation.

So Long La Nina!

A transition from La Niña to ENSO-neutral conditions occurred during May 2011 as indicated by generally small sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies across the equatorial Pacific Ocean. The latest weekly Niño index values showed near-average SSTs in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific. Notice the figure below the absence of the "below average" sea surface temperatures that would typically be associated with the La Nina regime.



The duration of this La Nina was just less than 12 months, which is on the low end of the "average" duration of a La Nina event.


CLICK HERE for a full discussion on the end to La Nina.

Latest Solar Storm

The wait for the Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) continues. As it is expected to make but a glancing blow on the Earth's magnetic field, the timing of the impact is difficult (much more straightforward for a direct hit). Look for G1 (minor) Geomagnetic Storm conditions from 1200 UTC tomorrow (June 9) through June 10. The possibility remains for heightened Radiation Storm levels with the passage of the CME shock, but nothing greater than S2 (moderate) is forecast.

These types of eruptions can cause troubles with airline travels, GPS systems and have been known to knock power grids off line.


CLICK HERE for and Awesome animation of the GOES 15 Solar X-Ray Imager that is pictured below!!!