Near 100° Friday Through Sunday, Rain Chances Return Next Week!
Thursday Night Forecast Update
Thursday Night Forecast Update for July 21st:
The cold front didn’t bring much for rain, but did decrease the humidity across West Tennessee and dropped temperatures only a couple degrees. Highs reached 95° today but it felt no where near as hot as Wednesday due to the drier air mass that moved in behind the front. Highs will be around 100° the next 4 days but overall, we are looking at a dry heat so the heat index will likely stay at 105° or lower, why we do not have a heat advisory issued as of yet. We desperately need the rain across the region as we are a half foot of rain below normal since April 1st in Jackson. I will tell you when showers are likely to return coming up.
TONIGHT:
Behind last night’s weak cold front, the temperatures have only dropped a few degrees but the humidity took a decent hit behind the front. The northerly winds ushered in a drier air mass making it feel closer to 100° today instead of the 110-115° from Wednesday.
Overnight lows will drop down to around 70° tonight. Clear skies and a light northeast breeze can be expected by chances for rain appear to be 0% unfortunately. We desperately need the rain, and will not see any chances until we get into early next week.
FRIDAY:
Our first chance at another 100° day this week and possibly the start of several in row will return on Friday. Highs will reach the upper 90s or low 100s with sunny skies. It will be hot and humid and a heat advisory or potentially an excessive heat warning will be issued. Friday may not be as humid as it is going to be this weekend but it still is going to be very hot. Friday night lows will fall into the low 70s and rain chances look unlikely for most of the area.
THE WEEKEND:
Another very hot weekend is on the way for West Tennessee with highs sticking around 100° for both Saturday and Sunday. Overnight lows will also remain warm and muggy with temperatures only dropping to the mid to upper 70s both mornings. Rain chances seem very low this weekend so do not count on much for pop up storm chances to cool you down either. A heat advisory will be issued for sure and potentially an excessive heat warning as the feels like temperatures will be around 110° both weekend days. The winds will come out of the southwest and skies will be mostly sunny to sunny all weekend long. Stay cool folks!
NEXT WEEK:
The heat wave is expected to continue into next week for West Tennessee. Highs will still be near 100° for the first half of the week before cooling off towards the end of the work week. The big difference between next week and this week is chances for rain appear to be in the forecast most afternoons and evenings next week. Lows will hang around the mid 70s most mornings as the humidity will be factor. The increase is moisture and a stalled out front should bring some decent rain totals back to the mid south. The winds will stay out of the west or southwest most of the week as it appears the front will not make it through West Tennessee, just sit to the north most of the week.
FINAL THOUGHT:
We saw our first +100° day on the year in July and some more 100s could be possible over the next couple of weeks. It was the first 100° since July of 2012, as this is shaping up to be one of the hottest summers on record for West Tennessee. The official start of summer kicked off on Tuesday June 21st, and there will be more chances for severe weather and heat waves though as we approach the start of summer. So you need to stay weather aware to changing weather patterns and monitor the forecasts closely. We got you covered in the WBBJ 7 Storm Team Weather Center as always.
For tips on preparing for the storms, click here. To download the WBBJ 7 Weather app, click here.
Storm Team Chief Meteorologist
Joel Barnes
Facebook: @JoelBarnesWeather
Twitter: @JoelBarnes13
Instagram: @joelbarnes13
