Topline
Nearly 50 million people across the U.S. were under heat bulletins for yet another round of scorching conditions Saturday, with many under the National Weather Service's most severe level of alert--an excessive heat warning--as a summer of intense heat across the country shows no sign of letting up.
Yet another heat wave is bringing stifling conditions to a broad area of the United States.
Key Facts
Most of those dealing with heat bulletins were in the south, where excessive heat warnings stretched from Middle Tennessee to south Texas.
Temperatures soared above 100 degrees Saturday afternoon across much of the region, with heat indexes reaching 115 degrees or higher in areas due to high humidity.
As of 4 p.m. EDT Saturday, cities like Waco, Texas, and Tupelo, Mississippi, had already set record highs, while the mercury in larger cities was also nearing record levels.
Austin, Texas, was 103 degrees at 4 p.m.—just short of its record of 104—while Dallas was 103, closing in on its July 9 record of 106.
Excessive heat warnings were also in effect for parts of central Nebraska and the desert southwest, where highs were expected to reach 116.
Crucial Quote
“Yesterday was hot, and this weekend will be even hotter,” Houston’s National Weather Service office noted in a forecast discussion. “This weekend’s temperatures will be among the hottest we’ve seen in the area so far this year."
What To Watch For
Temperatures in the southeast are expected to moderate somewhat on Sunday, with highs generally topping out in the 90s, but Texas and the Great Plains could get even hotter. Austin is forecast to reach 108 on Sunday.
Key Background
The stifling temperatures are the result of the latest “heat dome” of high pressure parking itself over the U.S. this summer, causing stagnant air and suppressing cloud formation. Dozens of cities have already set a new record high at least once this summer, and even more heat could be on the way. The Climate Prediction Center expects much of the U.S. will deal with above-average temperatures into the fall. Experts say more frequent and more intense heat waves may be one of the earliest and most noticeable impacts of climate change.
Further Reading
More Than 70 Million Bake In Record-Breaking Southwest Heat Wave—And It’s Pushing East (Forbes)
Record Highs Set In Over Two Dozen U.S. Cities In June Heat Wave – So Far (Forbes)
