Pittsburgh Weather: Please don't add to the smoke
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - The interesting week continues, with several unusual things all coming together, giving us mets plenty of things to discuss.
- Daily average High: 79 Low: 52
- Sunrise: 5:51 a.m. Sunset: 8:48 p.m.
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Today: Smoky skies, with highs in the mid-70s. We only hit the mid-70s yesterday. Small rain chance Tuesday afternoon.
Any Alert Days Ahead?: Negative.
Aware: The best chance for rain over the next week comes on Sunday.
First off is the smoke that was sitting on top of us yesterday. It should be back today. Smoke is frustrating because we have to check special data points to make a forecast. The data comes in during the middle of the day and is effective from the day before. We also have models that 'forecast' where smoke will be thickest. It's not the greatest in showing how thick our smoke will be. Oftentimes, we fail to forecast the first day (see yesterday) of smoke because it is so far off the beaten path of what we normally do and forecast.
Now that I have gone through my rant about the frustrations of forecasting smoke, let's talk about how smoke will impact us today. The skies should be hazy again. I have rolled back highs to just the mid-70s. We just hit the mid-70s yesterday, and I was five degrees off with my high, thanks to the smoke.
There is an isolated chance for rain today, but most folks will be completely dry. Smoke, along with atmospheric conditions and particulates from local factories, will also be enough to lower air quality at the surface to the point it should be noticeable for those with respiratory issues.
The smoke will be part of the weather story for the rest of the week.
We have a cool front that will slide through today, bringing that tiny chance for rain. This means temperatures, even without smokey skies, will be in the mid-70s all on its own. If the smoke is as thick Wednesday as I expect it will be Tuesday, highs on Wednesday could be even cooler. The smoke will be around on Thursday and Friday, too.
When it comes to rain chances, rain chances at or better than scattered will happen on Friday, Sunday, and Monday.
Our issues when it comes to our rain deficit and abnormally dry conditions will continue over the next week with no 'drought busters' expected.
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