For the third week in a row, it’s hot out there.
A large part of the United States is experiencing third consecutive week of unbearable heat. It’s scorching hot across the Southern Plains and Mississippi Valley to the Great Lakes, and Deep South.
On Monday, Minneapolis reached 101 degrees Fahrenheit. This was just one of 11 major cities that set daily heat records. (The previous record for this date was 88 degrees in 1993.
21 heat records were broken in the Ohio Valley and Southeast on Wednesday. Nashville and Charlotte, N.C. both reached 101 degrees, breaking previous records that were 100. Macon, Ga. reached 105 degrees, four degrees higher than the 1988 record.
The National Weather Service had issued heat advisories for approximately 25 million people across Texas and southern Georgia as of Thursday morning.
Here’s a breakdown of the misery by region.
In the Midwest:
Daytime highs in Great Lakes Region reached the mid-90s last week, which is almost 20 degrees more than the average for this season.
Chicago reached a record 99 degrees this week. On Tuesday, Detroit saw 96 degrees, breaking a daily record that dates back to 1933. Rockford, Illinois, which is about 80 miles northwest from Chicago, and Toledo (Ohio) both reached 100 degrees on Tuesday. These records were set in 1988 by Alex Lamers, a meteorologist at the Weather Service.
On Wednesday, heat concerns began to decrease as a cold front moved the heat to the southeast. On Thursday, highs will drop to the 80s in the region.
In the South
The grueling temperatures across much of the United States this week are the result of what meteorologists call a heat dome — a high-pressure system that acts like a lid on a pot. It was centered in Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee at the beginning of the week, according to Brian Hurley, a meteorologist at the Weather Service.
Atlanta, where humid air keeps temperatures from reaching extremes (even though it feels brutal), recorded a Tuesday high of 95 degrees. This was three degrees below a 1933 record. The city also tied its heat records from 1964, when it reached 95 degrees.
It was so hot that the Atlanta Zoo closed its doors early Wednesday to make way for the hottest part.
On Wednesday, the heat dome moved south, focusing on the Mississippi Valley and the Gulf Coast States, as well as northern Florida. Mr. Lamers stated that the heat will be strongest in the Florida Panhandle, which is located between Texas and Florida by the end of the week. Temperatures there could reach triple digits.
Mr. Lamers stated that parts of the Gulf Coast were most vulnerable to record-breaking heat this weekend. Tallahassee, Fla. and Baton Rouge, La are two cities expected to reach 100+.
The coasts:
Heat advisories were issued Wednesday for large parts of Northern California’s Sacramento and Bay Area. However, temperatures did not rise above 100 degrees in Sacramento and the Bay Area, but they were higher than the coast.
The Northeast has been spared most of the heat. However, some cities, including Newark and Philadelphia, will see temperatures rise to the low 90s this weekend.
Looking ahead
According to the Weather Service, temperatures across the country will remain above average for the next few weeks. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasts a scorching heat wave for most of the United States.
Source: NY Times
