Today's Top Weather StoriesOn Weather & Climate Through the Eyes of Mark VoganGraphic courtesy of AccuWeather.com DANGEROUS WEATHER ALERT USAPlains to Mississippi Valley Severe Storm, Tornado Threat TodayAccuWeather HereLife-Threatening Thunderstorms Friday EveningAccuWeather HereVIDEO FROM HENRY MARGUSITY (ACCUWEATHER) Click Hereother news headlinesindia, asiaIndia Monsoon to Feature Near-Normal RainfallAccuWeather Hereiran, asiaDust Storm Continues throughout IranAccuWeather HereamericaOil rig sinks as 11 workers missingUSA Today Herechile, south americaMagnitude 6.1 quake hits Chile, no damage reportedLos Angeles Times Hereiceland, europe'Explosive' Katla Could Affect Global Temperature, Devastate IcelandAccuWeather HereToday's Weather across Americafrom AccuWeather.comWEATHER ALERT TORNADO/SEVERE WEATHER DANGER FOR SOUTHERN PLAINS INTO MISSISSIPPI VALLEY!!BREAKING: Plains to Mississippi Valley Severe Storm, Tornado Threat Today HereVIDEO:
Severe Weather Outbreak Underway! HereSevere Weather Threatens Oil Spill AreaAccuWeather HereWeather TalkBy Mark VoganMy Reasons for why Temperatures now aren't as warm and they could be and why Brits should perhaps be glad it's not warmer now as this may signify change from above, for the better!Whilst the rains fall here amid cool temperatures, across the Atlantic the big focus is on the severe weather and tornado threat for the southern plains, into the deep south states that will likely fire up as temperatures warm by noon and through the afternoon hours today and a surge of moister Gulf air with upper 60 to lower 70-degree dew points push into the ever increasingly unstable atmosphere across the South (Check out
Todays Top Stories & Todays Weather across America for more).
It's now April 23 and still no 100s?
We still haven't seen any 100s across the US, the closest being 99 degrees at Death Valley, CA and I remember a 98 degrees at Laredo, TX. Usuaully we've seen at least a few days that have topped the century mark but so far, not this year. We're currently on track to see no 100s until May and the only time since 2000 where America didn't see 100 until May was in 2003 where it took up until May 3rd. Does this portray a cooler US summer, simply because we haven't seen any real heat yet from Texas to California? No, it's because a dominant trough has parked itself for the most part over the West and thus we've seen a 10-20 above normal departure over the East where high pressure has been the focus, however though we saw that early April heatwave, temps calmed down after that and remained well above normal but not outrageously, perhaps the large spread of warmth over east of Rockies has meant less intense heat because it's hit early and when the high's themselves have still to intensify since usually it's not until late May and June before the sun is strong enough to pump high pressure cells which can deliver hotter surface temperatures. I believe that when you have a blowtorch of say days where highs are topping 100-105 degrees over West Texas where a strong ridge is in control, usually a lot of cold air will cover the majority of the rest of the surrounding atmosphere, this pressure from the surrounding trough may help pump the ridge and therefore bring 100s to typical early season locales such as the corridor from Texas westward to California.
Shrink and squeeze high pressure and you get strong pressure heights and warmer temperatures at the surface, but allow the high to spread from say eastern Colorado all the way up to Maine and you have too much of an area and therefore restricted "thickness values" which mean temperatures can't achieve levels greater than a certain thereshold as the compensation of too much atmosphere to cover, limits the heat in a certain area. To experience super heat across a large area like we saw in 2006, that was in the height of summer when you get massive ridges and therefore major heat across a large area, this time of year, it's too early and high's are not able to become that strong for at least another 2 months...
Even we we see major heat in May or even early June, you still see other areas that are cold, even snowy. That is the exact reason why you see major heat. It's that very surrounding weather that's forcing warmer temperatures in that area where high pressure is dominant. Only in July or August when the sun is strongest and so too are high pressure cells where they reach there most northerly position do we see major heat waves blast large regions... Even for that to happen other factors must play out including warmer SST's near the region of strong high pressure, as well as dry soils or simply drought conditions within a large area.
Last summer we saw the warmest ever reading in Seattle and 90s go all the way to the Arctic, this I believe was achieved because of just how cold the air was, east of the Rockies. This massive area of cool air and Canadian High pressure squeezed a vast region that would normally have this "squeezed" high covering, therefore the ridge itself was squeezed and pumped upwards into higher than normal altitudes within the atmosphere, therefore creating a much deeper column for the air to sink and heat the surface below....
.. In fact I believe a much warmer summer is in store for the US as well as here in the British Isles... This cool, unsettled pattern by the way we're in on this side of the pond, is not a precursor of what lies ahead.
Those wanting to know what the weather will be like over the next 10 days?
I strongly believe this pattern will continue till May with days where we see a good deal of sunshine and temps warm beneath that strong sun, however though I don't believe we will have washout days, we may see showery weather, some heavy and perhaps thundry but temps are slowly going to climb as the upper atmosphere is often sluggish in changing at the mid and upper levels of the atmosphere after a cold winter. Right now, we're struggling to see a national maximum above 60 degrees which is pretty amazing for this late in April, however this slow warm-up despite a general high pressure dominance, is quite possibly the precursor to warmer, much warmer, sunnier times ahead as the seasonal adjustments are underway as the sun grows stronger and high pressure cells to our south grow stronger, larger and push ever closer to us.. We may find that what becomes a tropical Atlantic problem (more hurricane activity) is our gain up here as pressures lower further south and rise further north. Opposite to the past few summers where lower pressures and therefore rainy weather persisted here between 2007-2009. A 2005-2006 summer where warmer, high pressure dominated summers will return, worst case we see 2002!
What's Reaching Today's Blogs?Earth's Water Cycle has AcceleratedClimate Change, AccuWeather HereA Swarm of Tornadoes Today and SaturdayHenry Margusity, AccuWeather HereHeat Wave Abates PartiallyVagaries of the Weather Blog HereTodays US ExtremesCourtesy of AccuWeatherHigh: 97 degrees at Laredo, TX
Low: 11 degrees at Sunset Crater, AZ
UK ExtremesCourtesy of the Met OfficeWarmest High: 65 degrees at Northolt
Coolest High: 37 degrees at Loch Glascarnoch
Coolest Low: 23 degrees at Kinbrace
Todays Extremes at my houseHigh: 51 degrees
Low: 44 degrees
Thanks for reading.
-Mark
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