WICKED IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE...
Thursday was a brutal day around the central Midwest and the southern half of my region. Dew points in Cedar Rapids were measured at 81 degrees with a temperature of 92. That sent the heat index here to a whopping 112 degrees.
Here's a few more values obtained from the NWS in the Quad Cities. How about the 119 degree reading from Aledo just southeast of the Quad Cities. Yowza!
Much of the same area that was roasted today will get seared again on Friday. You can see the excessive heat warnings that are out from about I-80 south.
Again, this type of tropical environment can deposit incredible rainfall over short periods of time. Here's the rain totals from recent storms. This does not include anything beyond Thursday morning at 7:00am and some spots have had 3-4". In other words, this map will look much different in coming days.
With a front in the area for another 36 hours additional heavy rain is expected. However, it's still a bit early to say where the worst of it will fall. Cold pools and outflow boundaries from Thursday nights storms will dictate that. Additionally, the Midwest looks to remain in a favorable spot for rain the next couple of weeks. So, if you are one of those in need of water, there should be opportunities. The GFS has this for 2 week rainfall. Remember, this is just a trend indicator.
Here's a larger perspective.
Some of the storms that are around Friday have the potential to be strong. The Storm Prediction Center has this for a risk area as of Thursday night.
On a positive note the extreme heat is expected to break later in the weekend, at least for a few days. The CFSv2 shows this for temperatures day 1-5.
Then it shifts to this day 5-10.
If the CFSv2 is right, the heat will be back and it could be around for the start of fall. Here's September's temperature outlook. Toasty over the eastern half of the country.
Well, that's where things stand for now, The merry go round known as the ring of fire lives for another day. Have a great weekend and roll weather...TS
