August 08, 2024

Sustained Cooling Ahead for the Northwest

The last few weeks have generally been warmer than normal, but that will soon change, replaced by a at least a week of cooling, with temperatures sliding below normal through mid-month.

Consider a few forecasts.  At Seattle, temperatures will reach the upper 80s on today and Friday before declining into the mid-70s from Sunday through the next weekend.  


Pasco, in the Columbia Basin, will rise to near 100F, before dropping into the upper 80s next week.

What is going on?  

Upper level charts (for 500 hPa...about 18,000 ft) reveals the change.

Last night, there was a huge of high pressure (ridge) over northwest Canada and a portion of this feature extended southward over the West Coast (red indicates above-normal heights/pressure, blue--below normal).


By Tuesday, the situation is very different: the big Canadian ridge is gone, replaced by a trough of low pressure, with troughing extending over the Northwest.    Ridges bring sinking air and warmth, troughs the opposite.

Some light rain is even possible, with the accumulated precipitation through Wednesday morning enough to dampen western WA and southern BC

The cooling with some light drizzle in places will be enough to substantially reduce the threat of wildfires, as shown by the precipitations of fire energy (ERC) by the NW Coordinating Center (red is threatening, blue is less risk)


I will welcome the cool-down..... tired of constantly watering my vegetable garden....





4 comments:

  1. I welcome the cooler weather. My plants and lawn are suffering and costing me a fortune in watering. Tired of sweating every time I go outside.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I have been kind to my lawn, and have watered every other day...Surrounded by green now--but oh-oh!! Two mounds of dirt have appeared in my yard!...The moles are apparently feasting on certain insects/worms, that inevitably show up when the lawn becomes saturated...Oh well...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well being in Kaktovik Alaska (North East Alaska on the coast) and under the influence of this ridge it has been record warm. Here on the coast it got up to 74 degrees and inland it was pushing 90. Very hot for the arctic. We are glad for the cool down, but the warmth was nice too. Hopeful for 70's when I get home to Spokane at the end of the month!

    ReplyDelete
  4. The latter portion of the near-term forecast has been looking increasingly wet. If it verifies, KBLI could have its wettest August since 2008. It seems as though La Nina conditions are developing despite a neutral ONI.

    ReplyDelete

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