Heat Wave, Sudden Fall, Extreme Contrast
UPDATE: Added stats for Augusta, GA.
ORIGINAL POST:
The last three days have provided one of the starkest temperatures contrasts I've ever seen in the Eastern United States. North Carolina has experienced highs well over 100, while here in Pennsylvania we've been in the 50s during the afternoon, causing a temperature contrast of nearly 50 degrees between the states.
MORE MAPS:
3PM PLOT MAP (SHOWS 54 TO 103) | 4PM PLOT MAP (SHOWS 54 TO 104) | HIGHS YESTERDAY
That's the way it happens up north... it's not uncommon for a cold front to usher in chilly, rainy conditions in August, but usually there's not an extreme heat wave going on consistently down South. Here in State College, we've maintained an amazing - but chilly - 56 to 63 for the last 36 hours:
The culprit is a high pressure system over the Southeast, allowing for the heat while a cold front sits stalled across the Midwest and Northeast, with impulses of precipitation riding up over the high and along the front.
GALILEO SURFACE MAP - LIVE (PREMIUM | PRO)
That rain, of course, has resulted in copious amounts and big flooding problems for the Midwest and Ohio Valley.
7-DAY PRECIPITATION
And the continuing heat wave down south is notable. After much of the nation experienced a heat wave during the end of July and first two weeks of August (check out these NASA satellite images of the event and my wrap-up blog entry), the Southeast has continued to stay in the 100s and set records.
GREENWOOD, MS AUG. 2007 TEMPS (DARK RED), RECORDS (RED), NORMALS (GREEN)
Look at this month in Greenwood, Mississippi (PREMIUM | PRO), or Augusta, Georgia (PREMIUM | PRO) for example:
DAYS AT 99 OR ABOVE: Augusta: 13,* Greenwood: 11
HIGHEST READING: Augusta: 108, Greenwood: 106
RECORDS BROKEN: Augusta: 10, Greenwood 4+**
LOWEST AFTERNOON TEMP SINCE JULY: Greenwood 96, Augusta 89***
*13 Days Over 100
**3 Days Missing
***89 Probably Due to Thunderstorms
Here are some more examples of hot cities this month:
Number Of Days Above 100 This Month: Augusta, GA (13); Columbia, SC (12); Montgomery, AL (12); Nashville, TN: 11; Memphis, TN: 9; Atlanta, GA: 8; Raleigh, NC: 5
Note, however, that this is after an unusually cool July in the South, compared to last year's unusually hot July (see maps below), which caused 5 young athletes to die from heat stroke. Let's hope this August does not bring similar numbers.
Graphics assembled from NCDC maps.
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