Substantial warmup, drier weather ahead for saturated eastern US during late August and early September

A change in the weather pattern will allow a long stretch of hotter, drier weather, when compared to much of the summer in the mid-Atlantic, central Appalachians and New England.

Pleasant weather will remain the theme to kick off the weekend, with sunshine and low humidity.

"It will be comfortable for construction crews, farmers, sports teams and anyone else heading to a county fair or enjoying outdoor activities," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski.

"However, fields may still be too wet for tractors or heavy equipment to drive through."

Next week, the pattern will continue to evolve.

"We expect a major shift in the jet stream to develop next week," according to AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok.

"The jet stream will bulge northward in the eastern United States, which will allow an area of high pressure to build in [the] Southeast," Pastelok said.

The circulation around this high will create a very warm and humid weather pattern that is likely to build over a broad area in the Eastern and Central states early in the week.

Temperatures are expected to climb well into the 80s to the lower 90s, or 8-15 degrees above average, in the Northeast. Some locations will challenge record highs.

"Humidity will also increase for early next week, which will create even higher AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski said.

"The heat and humidity should be trimmed later in the week but may quickly make a comeback for Labor Day weekend."

The pattern will not only feature above-average temperatures but should also greatly tone down the frequency of showers and thunderstorms.

"The pattern later this month into early September, including the Labor Day weekend, does not mean that rain will be totally absent, but it should rain less often in many locations, when compared to earlier this summer," Pastelok said.

The pattern should translate to less interruptions for outdoor activities ranging from construction projects to ball games.

The upcoming pattern may allow farmers to get into their fields for harvest and may speed the drying process of cut hay. Hay must dry sufficiently prior to being stored to avoid the risk of mold and lower the potential for spontaneous combustion while being stored.

The weather change also means that some hot days are in store as some students have already resumed classes or will soon be starting school for the season.

For people who still have vacation time coming, some great weather for the pool or the beach is expected.

Download the free AccuWeather app to find out what days are most likely to rain and how warm it will get in the coming weeks.

"It is possible a couple of cool presses from eastern Canada occur just past the first few days of September, but warmth may again build toward the middle part of the month," Pastelok said.

Much of the Northeast is in need of a long stretch of dry weather to allow stream and river levels to return to normal.

Some locations received record rainfall during July. A few locations, including Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and Concord, New Hampshire, have already had their wettest August on record. Williamsport has had back-to-back record wet months.

The dry spell is especially needed now to reduce the risk of flooding if a tropical storm or hurricane were to affect the region.

The Atlantic hurricane season peaks during September but continues through the end of November.

Even though lower numbers of tropical storms and hurricane are anticipated this year, compared to average, all it takes is one storm affecting a populated area to define a season from either flooding or damaging winds.

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