Stormy, steamy weather poised to return to northeastern US this week
The dry stretch in the northeastern United States will not last long as showers, thunderstorms and steamy air make a comeback this week.
Clouds will stream overhead as wet weather from the South gradually spread northward across the central Appalachians and mid-Atlantic
Aside from a pocket of rain in part of the mid-Atlantic, thunderstorm activity will tend to be very sparse into Tuesday morning.
The rain will not come from Gert, which will get steered well out to sea this week.
However, beachgoers and boaters should be mindful of the enhanced threat for rip currents and choppy seas through the middle of the week.
“Additional unsettled weather will return for the latter half of the week and perhaps linger into next weekend,” AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Rathbun said.
On Tuesday afternoon, a system sweeping through the region could trigger heavy and gusty thunderstorms from the New York to northern New England. There is the potential for some of these thunderstorms to turn severe with damaging winds being the primary threat.
Areas along the mid-Atlantic and southern New England coasts will largely be spared by this round of thunderstorms.
Another round of stormy weather poised to arrive beyond midweek will bring rain, thunderstorms and potential disruptions to a larger swath of the region.
“While it does not appear every day late this week will be a washout, any thunderstorm could produce heavy rainfall in a short period of time and cause travel delays,” Rathbun said.
Just how quickly a storm sweeps out of the Midwestern states will determine whether some areas experience multiple days of unsettled weather and if flooding could be a concern due to repeated, heavy downpours. There is the potential for some of the storms at late week to dump several inches of rain in a matter of hours.
A modest rise in humidity and temperatures will accompany the stormier pattern, making it feel more like summer when compared to the cooler than average first half of the month.
“Wednesday could turn out to be the warmest day in nearly two weeks across the mid-Atlantic,” Rathbun said.
High temperatures are projected to come close to or hit the 90-degree Fahrenheit mark in Philadelphia, New York City, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
Taking into account the humidity and other factors, AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures will be several degrees higher than the actual temperature and could come close to 100.
New England, especially northern portions, will largely be spared from the increasing heat and humidity due to frequent shots of cool, dry air from Canada.
AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok is concerned that northern New England may continue to miss out on most rain events through the remainder of August and into September. Last Thursday's most recent report by the U.S. Drought Monitor indicated that parts of Maine were abnormally dry or experiencing a moderate drought.
Not only can more of the region dry out, but the dry spell could allow for more prolonged warmth to unfold in the upcoming weeks.
"More consistent above-normal warmth is expected in northern New England the last week of August into September," Pastelok said, "but wetness may make the warmth more inconsistent the farther south and west you go."
"The one thing that could change the pattern would be if a tropical system threatens the East Coast as that could lead to a stretch of hot weather," he added.
Following the departure of Gert, there are no signs of a tropical system taking aim at the East Coast in the near future. However, AccuWeather meteorologists will be closely monitoring the tropics as the peak of hurricane season approaches in early September.
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