United States

By Alex Sosnowski, Expert Senior Meteorologist

July 12, 2012; 5:11 AM

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The area from Texas to the Carolinas and southern Virginia, including the Mississippi Delta will be on the receiving end of needed rain along with a break from the extreme heat in many areas this week.

The high pressure area responsible for relentless heat and stingy rainfall has shifted position, setting up shop in the West this week.

The combination of a stalled front and Gulf of Mexico moisture will lead to rounds of showers and thunderstorms in part of the South Central, Southeastern and southern mid-Atlantic states.

Rain, in the form of thunderstorms, is in the forecast for most days through the weekend from San Antonio to Little Rock, Baton Rouge, Memphis, Tupelo, Birmingham, Atlanta, Columbia, Raleigh and Richmond.

Little Rock, Ark., has received a little over 2.00 inches of rain since May 1, compared to a normal of nearly 9.50 inches.

While rain from Debby during June soaked much of Florida and southernmost Georgia, it missed the rest of the South.

Portions of Texas that were making progress in terms of rainfall this spring were slipping back into abnormally dry and building drought conditions this summer.

According to Agricultural Meteorologist Dale Mohler, "Rain will reach many soybean, rice, cotton and peanut growing areas in the South."

There is the potential for several inches of rain in this area this week.

A small portion of the area will get too much rain to fast, leading to flash and urban flooding problems.

It will take more than a few days of thunderstorms to break the drought, but since the pattern of persistent high pressure has been snapped, there will be other opportunities for rainfall moving forward through July in the South.

While some rain has fallen and will dot the southern part of the Midwest late this week and beyond, it is too little too late for a large part of the corn crop in the area. Overall yields at the end of the season will be negatively impacted.

Meanwhile, in portions of Colorado and the Four Corners area, moisture trapped under the high pressure area will continue to be recycled in the form of drenching showers and thunderstorms.

Air flowing uphill will enhance the activity at the local level. Unfortunately, not all areas in need of rain in the West will be on the receiving end of the water. There is also the risk of flash flooding, especially in recent burn areas.