A few thoughts on our weather locally and across the southeast U.S. as we bake in 90-degree heat once again…
On September precipitation
Re-visiting our September weather recap published a couple of days ago, it was interesting to note how much rain fell from so few events. The airport had its third wettest September on record with just shy of 10″ of rain and our station in Bartlett had its wettest September in the 20 year history of that station. However, nearly all of that rain fell as a result (directly or indirectly) of two tropical systems, as the remnants of Hurricane Helene stalled over the region mid-month and then moisture from Hurricane Helene brought a couple more inches to end the month. Drought conditions before Francine were becoming problematic, but by the end of the month, drought conditions were completely wiped out by these two systems.
On the (hopefully) last vestiges of summer
When we last reached 90 degrees (before this weekend), it was September 22. We appeared to be right on target, as the typical last 90-degree day of the year is September 19. As Lee Corso on College Gameday likes to say…
The periphery of a heat dome that is resulting in triple digit/record heat in the southwest U.S. has resulted in a hot weekend (for October) with temperatures reaching 90 degrees Saturday and poised to do it again today. Pair it with slightly elevated moisture levels and there’s just enough sticky to make it feel too much like late summer and not enough like fall! So now we are about 2 weeks late with our final 90 degree days of the year. And I do say final because,..
Another major fall front arrives tonight and it brings with it a full week (at least) of Chamber of Commerce weather! A sure sign of an autumn front is not just the cooler daytime temperatures, which will be in the 70s for the coming week, but also the dewpoints, and those look spectacular! By Monday morning, our dewpoints will be in the 40s and they’ll stay there throughout the upcoming week. That means cool morning lows in the low to mid 50s, some 40s possible at sunrise in outlying areas, and very pleasant evenings as temperatures drop into the 60s by sunset each evening! Enjoy this week’s weather however you can!
On an increasingly impactful hurricane season
I’ll end with some thoughts on the increase in tropical activity the past month, and going into another busy week. A hyper-active season was forecast earlier this year, and after an initial flurry, a dearth of activity during the summer months had some of us starting to question those forecasts. Then September hit, and boy did it ever! First it was Hurricane Francine along the central Gulf coast with its flooding rains and strong wind.
That event was followed by Hurricane Helene in late September, which brought a serious category 4 pounding to the eastern FL panhandle near Tallahassee into southern Georgia. That area was somehow quickly overshadowed by a massive flooding event that has turned into a humanitarian crisis for many areas in the western Carolinas. That event of up to 20-30″ of rain fell from a predecessor rain event and then the remnants of the storm itself. The devastation that has ruined lives and infrastructure across the southern Appalachians is unfathomable.
And now? Milton has formed in the southwest Gulf of Mexico and looks to beat a path towards central Florida as another major hurricane mid-week. The weather and emergency management communities have long feared this rare west-to-east track of a major hurricane heading straight into Tampa Bay as a potential worst case scenario for storm surge into a highly populated area, not to mention the high winds and torrential rainfall a major brings. Hopefully, everyone in the central and south Florida region are paying close attention to local authorities and the National Hurricane Center and will heed preparation and evacuation orders when issued. Our prayers are extended to everyone who has been, or will be, affected in a season that will likely be remembered for years to come.
