CLEAR SKIES, FOR NOW

7:00 PM 7/25/12 (Forecaster Mike) – What a beautiful Wednesday it was across much of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast! From my location in Maryland, it was great to see perfectly blue skies overhead, without the haze that we often see too much of! With the moon approaching the first quarter phase, it may be a nice night to head out and look at the stars tonight. But if you are across portions of the Ohio Valley, Mid-Atlantic, and Northeast, head out quickly, because we will be deteriorating rapidly on Thursday.

CLEAR AND CALM WEDNESDAY NIGHT – The picture attached above was taken by our own Advisor Foot in NW Pennsylvania, not too far away from the Three Rivers Zone. If you are heading out to either enjoy a beautiful sunset in the next few hours, or maybe trying to get in some stargazing, you can look forward to mostly clear skies all across Western Pennsylvania, with lows dropping into the upper 60s to lower 70s. All across the northeast quarter of the country, enjoy the cool break while it lasts!

High-Resolution NAM Surface Temp Model for 8 PM Thursday

HOT, THEN STORMY – The Ohio Valley Severe center will have their hands full on Thursday as storms stretch across the region including the Northeast Ohio zone, all the way to the Metro New York zone. Thursday will be quite the wild one across the whole region from the Upper Midwest, through the Ohio Valley, and into the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. As you can see in the map below, the Storm Prediction Center has warned of a relatively rare MODERATE RISK for severe storms. The risk is so high because we have warmth flooding into the region very quickly. For example, as a frontal boundary slides through late on Thursday, Erie, PA could be in the mid 70s, while mid to upper 90s still hold in portions of Southern PA!

Image from the SPC

A similarly drastic increase in humidity will also add to the volatility of the severe weather situation. A warm front passing through early Thursday will allow the warmth to enter the region, although it will be followed by a brutal cold front right on its heels. Make sure you are staying tuned to your local zones so that you know when storms are heading your way!