Capital Weather Gang - DC area weather blog, news - July 18, 2010

Today's worst is over; still really hot tomorrow

Thankfully the District's fourth 100-degree afternoon of 2010 has come to a close. All three area airports set record highs today as the mercury neared or surpassed triple digit levels across the region with heat indices up to 110.

By Jason Samenow | July 24, 2010; 5:30 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Local Climate, Updates
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Records fall, and it feels close to 110

* Hottest day in hottest summer: Full Forecast * * Excessive Heat Warning expanded to entire area thru 10 p.m. * * It's so hot (news story) | Post Local coverage | Heat Tips | UnitedCast * * Outside now? Radar & more: Weather Wall | Tropical Tracking * *...

By Jason Samenow | July 24, 2010; 1:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (34)
Categories: Extreme Heat
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Forecast: Hottest day in hottest summer

More than two thirds of the way through July, the year 2010 is warmer than any prior year this deep into the summer (defining it as June-July-August) on record. And today could be the hottest day. It may not be the hottest in an absolute sense - as July 6 and 7 hit 102. But when you factor in the humidity -- which will be much higher than those scorching days earlier in the month -- it will feel like a stifling 105-110 degrees. No other day has been that oppressively hot. Sunday, regrettably, remains steamy but some modest relief arrives for early next week.

By Jason Samenow | July 24, 2010; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (22)
Categories: Forecasts
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UnitedCast: Sweaty, steamy, stifling soccer

* Our Full Forecast | Weather Wall | Soccer Insider * United vs. Portsmouth F.C.Saturday July 24, 7:30 p.m., RFK Stadium KickoffFinal WhistleWeatherChance of RainNear 95Near 90Hot5%Thank your lucky stars that you're spectating and not playing this game with temps in the 90s and heat indices near 100. But even...

By Jason Samenow | July 24, 2010; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: UnitedCast
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PM Update: Very hot today, even hotter tomorrow

Temperatures near and above 100 likely Saturday * Excessive Heat Warning I95, Heat Advisory N&W; 12 p.m.-10 p.m. Sat * * Saturday's record high will fall | Bonnie impacts FL on way to Gulf * * Outside now? Radar, lightning, temps & more: Weather Wall * * Consec days 90+:...

By Ian Livingston | July 23, 2010; 9:20 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (25)
Categories: Forecasts
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Tropical storm Bonnie over Florida

The tropical disturbance we have been monitoring the past several days (see last blog entry) officially became tropical storm (TS) Bonnie late yesterday. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) upgraded this system to tropical storm status based on recent evidence of a closed circulation at the surface with winds of 40 mph.

By Capital Weather Gang | July 23, 2010; 1:30 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: Tropical Weather
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Saturday: Perfect timing to set a D.C. record

Usually when we talk about threatening record highs this time of year, the bar is set pretty high. 98, 99, often the the low 100s is what it takes to tie or set a record. It just so happens that tomorrow's date, July 24, carries the month's lowest record high temperature for Washington, D.C. -- 96 in 1987

By Dan Stillman | July 23, 2010; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Extreme Heat
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Forecast: Super hot... Saturday record?

HIghs are destined for near 100 today and tomorrow, and still well into the 90s Sunday. To make matters worse, high humidity surging back into our region will make the air feel more like 105 to near 110 at times. Don't mess with this kind of heat. Drink a lot of water and stay out of the direct sun. Not until Monday and Tuesday do we see the heat step back to more typical summertime levels. Will we at least see a chance for relief in the form of showers or thunderstorms?

By Camden Walker | July 23, 2010; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (34)
Categories: Forecasts
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Just how hot tomorrow?

* Excessive heat today & tomorrow: Full Forecast * document.domain = "washingtonpost.com"; function onQuizFrameLoad() { var iframe = document.getElementById("quizFrame"); var doc = iframe.contentWindow.document; var db = doc.body; var dde = doc.documentElement; var docHeight = Math.max(db.offsetHeight, dde.offsetHeight, dde.scrollHeight, db.clientHeight); iframe.style.height = docHeight + "px"; window.scrollTo(0, 0); }...

By Jason Samenow | July 23, 2010; 9:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Extreme Heat
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PM Update: Season's longest heat wave grows

This heat wave will become our longest of the year -- passing the 11 day long one that occurred June 19-29. Mostly sunny skies and a downsloping wind off the mountains have combined to create a hotter day than recent as highs reach the mid-90s most spots this afternoon. It's also a little less humid, but our "break" is only a day long. With higher humidity, we head closer to 100 tomorrow and likely past that mark on Saturday.

By Ian Livingston | July 22, 2010; 3:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (9)
Categories: Forecasts
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Did melting ice cause D.C. earthquake?

The news rang out across the nation: Mild earthquake shakes D.C. area. A real earthquake it was -- not the rumblings so often emanating from "inside-the-Beltway" political battles. Although the largest earthquake in the area since tracking of such began in 1974, it was minor in intensity (3.6 on the Richter scale) and no injuries or damage were reported. But, could there be more to this?

By Steve Tracton | July 22, 2010; 11:15 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (13)
Categories: Climate Change, Environment, Tracton
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Coming soon: Tropical depression or storm Bonnie

VISIBLE SATELLITE IMAGES AND OBSERVATIONS FROM THE BAHAMAS INDICATE THAT THE AREA OF LOW PRESSURE IN THE SOUTHEASTERN BAHAMAS HAS BECOME BETTER ORGANIZED AND A CLOSED CIRCULATION HAS FORMED. ADVISORIES ON A TROPICAL DEPRESSION OR A TROPICAL STORM WILL BE INITIATED AT 11 AM EDT... THIS ADVISORY WILL LIKELY INCLUDE TROPICAL STORM WATCHES AND WARNINGS FOR PORTIONS OF THE BAHAMAS AND SOUTHERN FLORIDA.

By Jason Samenow | July 22, 2010; 10:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Tropical Weather
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Forecast: Heat today, humidity tomorrow

The good news is that climatically speaking, we are at the peak of summer heat and it should be all downhill after this weekend. The problem is there are probably going to be quite a few bumps of heat before we return to consistently more comfortable levels. Thundershowers will be few and far between now and this weekend which is good for outdoor activities. But oh the heat and humidity! We should easily break a record on Saturday. The bonus for this period is lower humidity today and again on Monday.

By David Streit | July 22, 2010; 9:45 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (16)
Categories: Forecasts
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PM Update: After a week of heat, bigger coming

We saw pesky midday clouds again today for the third time in a row, but as with the last two days, the additional clouds couldn't keep highs from rising to near 90 or into the low 90s. The clouds have become a bit more scattered late in the day and breaks are likely to continue. One or two spots may see a storm still into the evening, though we're at least temporarily moving away from higher rain chances of recent. Attention can now fully turn to rising heat levels that last into and probably through the weekend.

By Ian Livingston | July 21, 2010; 3:30 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Forecasts
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In focus: The heat & humidity double whammy

Back on July 6 and 7, when we suffered through the hottest days of the summer thus far, you may recall it wasn't all that humid. Though Reagan National sizzled to 102 both of those days and BWI touched a jaw-dropping 105 on 7/6, afternoon relative humidity values averaged just over 20% and dew points were in the relatively comfortable mid-to-upper 50s. Compare those conditions to what we're predicting for this Saturday - when we think highs will reach the upper 90s to near 100 but relative humidity values will likely be closer to 40% with dew points around 70. Due to the added humidity, the coming heat may feel more oppressive than the record-breaking heat of just two weeks ago.

By Jason Samenow | July 21, 2010; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Extreme Heat, Science
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Forecast: Any hope for break in heat?

This same old hot and humid pattern -- and it really is getting old at this point -- continues through the weekend. A comment left yesterday by CJWill1 probably sums up what many are wondering -- "How long can this pattern continue?? I know nothing about meteorology, but it would seem that this would have to break just based on history, odds, whatever." Unfortunately, there's no sign of any extended stretch of below-normal temperatures. The only real hope in the short term is that a cold front, due to arrive late in the weekend, has enough umph to at least briefly knock the heat and humidity down a notch or two for early next week.

By Dan Stillman | July 21, 2010; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Forecasts
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PM Update: Some risk of showers/storms

Clouds that rolled in this morning continued across the area for much of the midday, but breaks of sun have become more common this afternoon. The earlier clouds tried to keep us below 90, but they mostly failed as highs reach near 90 and into the low 90s this afternoon. Today's 90+ at Reagan National makes 37 for the year, which equals D.C.'s typical annual average with plenty of warmth left to go. Like most of the last 10 days or so, we run the risk of a shower or storm through the evening.

By Ian Livingston | July 20, 2010; 7:45 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Forecasts
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Heat waves, then and now plus...

After the warmest June on record at Reagan National Airport (DCA) and, as of mid-month, on track for one of the warmest Julys, even the Baltimore/Washington National Weather Service Forecast Office at Sterling, Va. has seen fit to make comparisons. According to the official Washington weather record and as verified by a Sterling meteorologist in a recent forecast discussion, the summer of 1930 was one that we definitely don't want to repeat, even though we do seem to be well on our way.

By Don Lipman | July 20, 2010; 11:30 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Extreme Heat, Lipman, Local Climate
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Tropics: Caribbean not so quiet anymore

Just one week ago, only a few tropical cumulus clouds dotted the sky over the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. However, as discussed in my previous blog,there were signs that the local conditions were about to change.

By Greg Postel | July 20, 2010; 10:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Tropical Weather
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Forecast: A few storms, humidity, heat - repeat

Well, it's been exactly one week ago today since we've had a high temperature in Washington below 90 degrees. And as it looks right now, we'll probably see another week go by before we see anything that "cool" again. Most days over the next week should be in the low-to-mid 90s with moderate humidity, along with opportunities for thunderstorms. However, I worry about Friday and Saturday when we could approach the upper 90s to near 100. These are hot times.

By Matt Rogers | July 20, 2010; 9:45 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Forecasts
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PM Update: Shower and storm threat yet again

Despite midday clouds and some spits of rain, we broke back into sunshine this afternoon and temperatures soared toward 90 and above. Now eyes turn to the west and northwest as new showers and storms begin to form and move this direction. We've seen a bit of a turnaround in our "rain luck" recently, so we'll be on the lookout for more showers or strong to severe storms into the evening.

By Ian Livingston | July 19, 2010; 3:30 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (21)
Categories: Forecasts
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Climate expert warns of blogosphere's divisiveness

I recently came across a fascinating interview in Stanford Magazine with a prominent climate scientist there, Stephen Schneider, who has spent decades pondering and trying to improve climate science communication. A professor of interdisciplinary environmental studies who has published widely on climate change, Schneider is the author of the 2009 book "Science as a Contact Sport." Recently, he has spoken out against the "political assaults" and hate speech that have been directed against him and some of his colleagues due to their climate research. In the interview, Schneider makes a thought-provoking case that the blogosphere is fracturing, rather than unifying, the public when it comes to climate science and policy.

By Andrew Freedman | July 19, 2010; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (28)
Categories: Climate Change, Freedman, News & Notes, Science
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Forecast: Summer stickiness and storms

Chances of thunderstorms will come and go this week and high temperatures will vary within about a 5-10 degree range, from the upper 80s to the upper 90s. The one constant though -- all week long -- will be the ~~heinously~~ high humidity. But wait, remember I'm not letting it bother me...

By Jason Samenow | July 19, 2010; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Forecasts
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Some Sunday evening storminess

* Hot & even more humid: Work-week Forecast * * Outside now? Radar, lightning, temps & more: Weather Wall * An area of thunderstorms containing pockets of heavy rain, frequent lightning and gusty winds has blossomed in northern Fairfax County and will affect D.C, southern and eastern Montgomery County, and...

By Dan Stillman | July 18, 2010; 11:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Updates
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Forecast: Heat locked in, humidity to get worse

So, which kind of heat wave do you prefer? The one earlier this month that featured attention-grabbing highs near and over 100, but only moderate humidity with no rain? Or the current one, which is more of the mid-90s variety but humid (and increasingly so it appears) with occasionally decent shower/storm chances? You know it's a rough summer when these are your choices. Can't decide? With no end in sight to this latest heat wave, you'll have plenty of time to consider.

By Dan Stillman | July 18, 2010; 4:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (30)
Categories: Forecasts
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UnitedCast: Seriously warm soccer

A thunderstorm isn't impossible but is unlikely. Otherwise, it'll be just as warm and humid out there as it has been the past few evenings, and will be for quite a few to come.

By Dan Stillman | July 18, 2010; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: UnitedCast
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Capital Weather Gang: July 18, 2010 - July 24, 2010