Heat Continues On but Some Relief Is Coming

THURSDAY WAS THE 10th CONSECUTIVE DAY AT OR ABOVE NORMAL || 66% OF AUGUST'S DAYS AT OR ABOVE NORMAL
The passing of a (weak) cold front Wednesday lead to slightly cooler temperatures Thursday but conditions are still very summer-like outside and the 90s aren't finished just yet. Wednesday's high temperature of 94° (and a peak heat index of 101°) is now officially the hottest day of 2013 and the warmest since August 8, 2012. It was also the 8th 90° day of the season and fell just 2° shy of a 60 year old record set back in 1953 (96°). The high Thursday reached 90° (9th this season) after a morning low temperature of 72°. Here's a look back at the temperature observations this month:



ONLY 25 (28%) OUT OF THE PAST 90 DAYS THIS SUMMER SINCE JUNE 1ST HAS SEEN MEASURABLE RAINFALL
We did get a trace of rainfall Wednesday but we have only had 3 days this month with measurable rainfall totaling 0.85" which is pretty much good for the 7th Driest August on record and the driest month since July 2012 (0.83"). The month's total is 2" below normal. The pattern has dried up some this summer as well and it has put a good dent into the surplus of rain we had for the year from the abnormally wet pattern we had back in the Spring. On August 29, 2013, the year's total precipitation amount was 29.63" which was only a half inch above normal but for the summer, the total precipitation (7.80") is 3.93" below normal (11.73"). This pattern keeps the central section of Indiana in a abnormally dry state. Here's a look at the latest drought monitor map released Thursday morning. There wasn't any changes from last weeks map.



Here's a look at how other areas in the state are doing in the rain department:

LOCATION	YEAR TO DATE PRECIP (thru Aug 29)	DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL	PRECIP SINCE JUNE 1	DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL	MONTH TO DATE PRECIP	DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL
BLOOMINGTON	29.10	-3.84	10.09	-2.96	0.26	-3.01
EVANSVILLE	35.05	+4.32	12.50	+2.01	1.36	-1.43
FT. WAYNE	32.33	+5.71	14.66	+2.84	5.07	+1.65
INDIANAPOLIS	29.63	+0.50	7.80	-3.93	0.85	-2.08
INDIANAPOLIS EAGLE CREEK	26.76	-1.66	7.92	-3.69	1.01	-1.95
LAFAYETTE	27.28	+1.93	8.66	-2.67	1.74	-1.52
MUNCIE	23.95	-3.74	8.14	-3.98	1.34	-1.74
SHELBYVILLE	20.58	-9.43	8.27	-3.96	2.44	-0.68
SOUTH BEND	26.88	+1.86	9.58	-1.72	2.99	-0.52
TERRE HAUTE	32.93	+1.96	11.90	-0.63	1.17	-2.13

Here's some highlights this year:



KEEPING INDIANAPOLIS BEAUTIFUL
Most of the state was in an exceptional drought last year but the wet winter/spring took us out of the those bad conditions putting us into the positive when we ended the Spring season. Burn Bans and Water Restrictions were lifted late last year and for some counties early this year. Things have now begun to reverse and we aren't in a drought yet but conditions are abnormally dry. This type of dry weather can cause wildfires or brush fires if the dry weather continues to persist. That's not the only effect though, it also wears down the trees. You can keep the trees looking good by watering them near the trunk and around them. FOX 59 has an exclusive story on this topic. Click or copy and paste the following url address below for more information.
http://fox59.com/2013/08/29/concerns-turn-to-trees-as-dry-weather-continues/#axzz2d54VDtGq


FRIDAY:
The toasty week continues on Friday as temperatures are once again expected to reach that 90° mark for possibly the 10th time this year. The day will start with plenty of sun but clouds will be on the increase in the afternoon. Won't rule out the possibility of late isolated shower but most will stay dry and rain chances remain relatively low for much of the state. Dew Points were a little lower on Thursday but expected to be higher on Friday so it will be a little bit more of a humid day as well.

FRIDAY NIGHT:
Clouds will invade the skies as a front approaches. Rain chances will slowly creep up but overall, the chances will still be low. We'll have a 20% chance for a shower or thunderstorm. Temperatures will drop into the low 70s.

LABOR DAY WEEKEND:
Saturday, Sunday, and Monday all feature chances for showers or thunderstorms. We're actually looking at 2 different frontal systems. The 1st on Saturday is another weak front that just brings that storm chance but not too much of an impact on temperatures. You can see the cold front passing through Central Indiana in the image to the right. A stronger front will pass on late Sunday night or early Monday morning that will put an end to that hot streak with temperatures only reaching the low to mid 80s for Monday's afternoon highs. You can see that front up in the Dakotas. This again will offer up a storm chance. 8AM (12z) runs of the GFS, NAM, & EUROPEAN weather models suggested perhaps a half inch to an inch of total precipitation by Monday morning.

UPCOMING...
We will have some swings in temps. We are at the time of the year where we'll begin to see more frequent cool blasts (frequent interruptions in the warm weather). Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (morning) we'll cool off from the heat but the drop in temps will be brief. It will become a tad warmer starting Wednesday Afternoon with temperatures making its way back to the mid to upper 80s. A much colder push of air is looming and looks to come mid month as summer days wind down and the fall season nudges closer. Fall officially begins September 22nd at 4:44pm EST.
I talked about it in a previous blog, September has a history of bringing in cooler temperatures. September only averages about 2 days with highs 90+ and 13 days with highs 80+. Here's some history over the past 10-15 years:



***8 DAY OUTLOOK***
 SUNRISE: 7:11AM | SUNSET: 8:19PM | DAYS UNTIL AUTUMNAL (FALL) EQUINOX: 24
 51% OF THE DAYS THIS SUMMER AT OR BELOW NORMAL | DAYS GET SHORTER & NIGHTS GET LONGER
 AUGUST PRECIP IS BELOW NORMAL. 25 OUT OF PAST 90 DAYS SAW MEASURABLE RAIN SINCE JUNE 1st

AUGUST 30	AUGUST 31	SEPT. 1st	SEPT. 2nd	SEPT. 3rd	SEPT. 4th	SEPT. 5th	SEPT. 6th
FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY	LABOR DAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY
PARTLY SUNNY	PARTLY SUNNY	PARTLY SUNNY	AM-RAIN? PM-SUN	SUNNY & NICE	SUNNY & NICE	MOSTLY SUNNY	PARTLY SUNNY
HOT & HUMID	T'STORM?	T'STORM?	NOT AS WARM	COOLER	WARMER	HOTTER	A TAD HOTTER
93	91	90	82	77	82	86	88
73	71	70	60	54	63	64	67