Irene Watch...
Irene may be down near the Dominican Republic but it is all the weather community is talking about. Irene will threaten the East Coast and may make landfall as a major hurricane...pinpointing where is the hard part. Right now, the NHC has Irene making landfall on Saturday near the Carolinas it is then expected to travel up the coast and COULD make a second landfall in New England sometime in the Sunday / Monday timeframe. It's too early at this time to say how it will impact us here in the Northeast for a number of reasons for one it's still nearly a week away and lots can change between now and then. Another reason is because the system still hasn't completely strengthened into a major hurricane even though we anticipate it will. Third, some of the energy that will inevitably steer Irene hasn't made it to the West Coast yet so some models don't have a very good grasp on how the overall atmosphere will look over the weekend. And lastly, assuming that Irene does make landfall in the Carolinas what type of weakening will it encounter in the process before it heads north. Every model run will be interesting to watch thru the week that is for sure! While it is early, it 's never too early to start thinking about a plan to secure property and personal belongings...while it may not get that it's always a good idea to have your ducks in a row. Interestingly, we just had the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Bob...the last landfalling hurricane here in New England and most of us remember the destruction Bob caused...now I'm not saying that will occur but the potential is certainly there.
In the meantime, we are enjoying some of the nicest air New England has seen this Summer and that should continue again tomorrow. Heat and humidity will be rising on Wednesday and Thursday and our next chance for T-storms will be Thursday evening with a coldfront.
