Current Air Quality:
HOUSTON – Saharan Dust is moving into SE Texas. This will lower air quality Wednesday and Thursday, which is dangerous for sensitive groups who suffer from respiratory problems (like asthma or emphysema). If you are in one of these groups we’d recommend spending as much time indoors as possible. Current air quality is below.
For more on the dust, check out this article here.
Wednesday’s Forecast
We are going to be hot and humid on Wednesday. Afternoon temperatures climb to the mid-90s in Houston with a heat index of 108°.
Why are we hot?
A high pressure system is making us hot. Triple-digit “feels like temperatures continue to climb this week as a heat dome traps warm air over our area. This heats up the Gulf of Mexico bringing us more heat and humidity along with a lack of rain and a lot of sunshine.
Heat alerts are in place to our north and east. If we hit a heat index of 108° consistently we’ll go under a heat advisory too.
Tracking the tropics:
There is a 60% chance of development with a tropical wave in the Atlantic over the next 7 days. The wave enters a zone with less Saharan Dust and weak wind shear, giving the wave a chance to develop. If it becomes a tropical storm it will become Debby.
As of today, most long range models appear to keep this system away from Texas as they’ll push the storm closer to the coast of Florida and the Carolinas.
10-day Forecast:
Saharan Dust will make for some hazy days starting Tuesday afternoon. The haze will also help limit shower activity this week. Temperatures will remain in the low and mid 90s this week.