Weather Blog: Nearing Record Highs Before A Cool-Down Next week

Last night's showers and storms to our west are moving eastward this morning across the far northern OK and southern Kansas state line. Most will fade away in the next few hours. There's a slim chance a sprinkle could reach the metro area.

When will we get cooler temperatures?

The big news is the high-pressure ridge in the mid-atmosphere that's going to heat things up today through at least Sunday. This ridge will shift away from the area Sunday into early next week, allowing a front to move into the area Sunday into Monday. This will bring a few showers and storms and a return to cooler weather early next week.

What are our chances for rain today?

Later this afternoon, a prefrontal trough will move into northwestern Oklahoma and south-central Kansas. This is expected to happen at the peak of daytime heating, which may lead to the development of a few scattered showers and storms.

The likelihood for northeast Oklahoma remains around 20 to 30%, but some scattered showers and storms will be affecting parts of the region. Due to the presence of hot weather, there is a potential for damaging downbursts of wind with any mature storms.

A few areas might experience pockets of moderate to heavy rainfall, but the scattered showers and storms will be very limited in nature. Later tonight, as the sun sets and the energy diminishes, these scattered showers and storms are expected to dissipate through the early evening hours.

A strong upper-level trough is approaching from the west between Friday and Saturday. Additional showers and storms are likely on Saturday afternoon across the Front Range of the Rockies and into the Central Plains states. Most, if not all, of the showers and storms should remain north of our area for the majority of Saturday.

Will it rain this weekend?

There is a very small chance early Saturday morning for a few scattered showers and storms along the Oklahoma-Kansas state line region, but this probability remains very low.

From Saturday afternoon into the evening, the surface boundary will start to shift southward from Kansas into northern Oklahoma. During late Saturday night and early Sunday morning, there may be a few scattered showers and storms near this boundary across southern Kansas. 

The front is expected to move southward on Sunday, slowly increasing the chances for scattered showers and storms along the boundary by Sunday evening into early Monday morning. The upper-level forcing will be ejecting to the north and east of the state, causing the front to move southward slowly.

By Sunday night and into early Monday morning, the boundary should be near or south of the Tulsa metro area, extending into southern Oklahoma throughout Monday. Most data indicate a change in the air mass early next week, leading to lower dew points and, consequently, cooler temperatures, with daytime highs dropping into the lower 80s and morning lows in the upper 50s and lower 60s by Tuesday morning.

What will the weather be like today?

This afternoon, temperatures will reach the mid to upper 90s from Tulsa westward. A few areas along the I-35 corridor may approach 100 degrees. Locations east of Highway 69 are expected in the mid-90s. With low-level moisture causing dew points to rise into the upper 60s and lower 70s, heat index values could range from 103 to 105.

What is the forecast for Friday and the weekend?

The peak of this hot spell is Friday, with morning lows in the 70s and daytime highs nearing 100 degrees from Tulsa westward. Heat index values could range from 105 to near 107, potentially prompting brief heat advisories in some areas during the afternoon.

Although not every high school will have football games on Friday night, the ones that do will begin with temperatures in the 90s and end in the 80s. There is a very slight chance for a few showers or storms across northern Ok Friday evening. We’ll have more about this scenario tomorrow.

The Cowboys are set to face the Utah Utes on Saturday afternoon in Stillwater, where game time temperatures are expected to be in the mid-90s, with heat index values surpassing 100.

The University of Oklahoma Sooners will play their inaugural game in the Southeastern Athletic Conference at 6:30 p.m. Saturday night, facing off against the Tennessee Volunteers. Temperatures are expected to be in the 90s, with heat index values approaching 100 during the early part of the game.

While most showers and storms will stay north of the Norman area throughout the night, there remains a slight chance for a shower or storm during the latter half the game, with this probability at or below 20%.

Emergency Info: Outages Across Oklahoma:

Northeast Oklahoma has various power companies and electric cooperatives, many of which have overlapping areas of coverage. Below is a link to various outage maps.

PSO Outage Map

OG&E Outage Map

VVEC Outage Map

Indian Electric Cooperative (IEC) Outage Map

Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives Outage Map - (Note Several Smaller Co-ops Included)

The Alan Crone morning weather podcast link from Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/0uFIBDXLEkxC7zKi58a2uB

The Alan Crone morning weather podcast link from Apple:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/weather-out-the-door/id1499556141?i=1000670027553

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