Cloudy and comfortable with a chance for thunderstorms Saturday in Philadelphia region
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Finally, a weekend without big heat or big storms.
Today will be seasonal in the mid and upper 80's which is exactly where we should be this time of year. A comfortable level of humidity will be in place and any heat index (feels like temperature) will only climb a degree or two above the actual air temperature. Skies will be mostly cloudy due to a system to our south but high pressure to our north will keep that system south of the Delaware Valley. Only isolated showers will be possible later today.
Sunday, we nudge temperatures upward a few degrees to near 90 with a tiny bump in humidity. It will be mostly sunny with an isolated shower late in the day.
Monday will be a similar day with scattered storms in the evening and overnight.
The big changes arrive Tuesday with a parade of systems bringing a chance of rain and storms each day through Friday. Temperatures will hover in the mid to upper 80's and higher humidity will return. Consider this your official umbrella alert for next week.
The massive heat dome which has gripped the nation since mid-June has subsided a bit. The current heat advisories and warnings are confined to the far western states stretching from Seattle to San Diego. The only heat advisory east of the Rockies is for the far southern tip of Florida including Miami. The Climate Prediction Center has still placed Philadelphia in a slightly warmer than normal pattern through the end of the month but extreme heat is not expected.
The severe weather pattern so prevalent over much of the nation and certainly here in Philadelphia has also quieted down leaving us with mainly non-severe storms next week.
The tropical Atlantic continues to be in an eerily quiet pattern and that will continue through next week. Speaking of the Atlantic, there is a large plume of Saharan dust crossing the Atlantic which will reach Florida by Monday. Some very pretty sunsets are possible in the Sunshine state early next week.
Is summer more than half over?
It depends on which definition of summer.
Unofficial summer: There have been 55 days since Memorial Day on May 27th and there are only 44 days until Labor Day on September 2nd.
Meteorological summer: There have been 50 days since June 1st and there are 43 days until September 1st.
Astrological summer: There have been 31 days since the summer solstice on June 20th and there are 64 days until the autumnal equinox on September 22nd.
7-day forecast
Saturday: High of 87, low of 68, mostly cloudy
Sunday: High of 90, low of 68, isolated showers
Monday: High of 90, low of 72, isolated showers
Tuesday: High of 88, low of 72, scattered showers
Wednesday: High of 87, low of 73, chance for storms
Thursday: High of 85, low of 73, scattered storms
Friday: High of 89, low of 72, chance for storms