Heat relief is just over the horizon

July will end with daily high temperatures just a couple degrees above Mecklenburg County's thirty year average. The big story is that daily low (i.e. morning) temperatures have been remaining 5-8 degrees above average. That is strictly due to the high humidity levels, as moist air retains the heat during the overnight hours more efficiently than dry air does.

Afternoon highs both today - Wednesday - and Thursday will top out in the low 90s. When the humidity is factored in the heat index both days looks to exceed the triple digit mark yet again. At this point there is no Heat Advisory posted for either day, but rest assured it'll continue to be hot and sticky.

The cavalry will then arrive in the form of a strong cold front. As that boundary approaches the area it will trigger showers and thunderstorms beginning Thursday afternoon. Those will continue Thursday night and throughout much of Friday. This graphic shows the forecast liquid totals over the next 72 hours:

The cold front will cross the area Friday morning, but the cooler and drier behind it will take a while to filter into the region. The overall result will be that the weekend weather will feel wonderful in comparison to recent weeks. More details on that in Friday's blogpost.