Monthly Archives: May 2012

Good Thursday afternoon everyone. The threat for severe thunderstorms is upon us as we have a Severe Thunderstorm Watch until 10pm for much of western and central Kentucky. Damaging winds and large hail are the main threats with an isolated tornado possible.

Here’s the watch outline with the latest warnings…

The severe threat isn’t confined to the watch and we may see additional storms going up across parts of eastern Kentucky this evening. Follow all the action on regional radar…

I will have more updates as needed and via twitter… @kentuckyweather

Take care.

Good Thursday to one and all. Our day is off and running on a nice note out there with some sunshine and pleasant temperatures. A strong storm system rolling into the Ohio Valley later today into Friday and will spawn a few rounds of showers and thunderstorms. Some of these storms may become severe.

The prime time for severe weather looks to be later this afternoon into the evening. Damaging winds, large hail and isolated tornadoes will be possible. The highest threat appears to be across central and western Kentucky during this time.

We may see the storms die out some later tonight and then refire across eastern Kentucky late Friday morning into early afternoon. Some of those storms could be strong or severe.

Here’s your dose of thunderstorm tracking toys…

Storm Prediction Center…

Current Watches

Possible Watches

Friday is the first day of June and that marks the start of meteorological summer. Temps will certainly not feel anything close to summertime. Readings behind the front will drop into the upper 50s and low 60s and then only recover into the low and mid 60s for areas getting some sunshine.

Clearing skies Friday night may allow temps to drop to near record low levels in the low and mid 40s for many areas.

The pattern for next week will find a huge shot of cool air just to our northeast and a heat ridge building to our southwest. That may put us into a normal to slightly below normal temp regime with a few rounds of showers and storms.

I will have updates on today’s severe weather threat as needed. I will also be using twitter to send out some rapid fire updates. Follow me @kentuckyweather .

Have a great Thursday and take care.

Good Wednesday everyone and thanks for making KWC your online weather home. The blog is having some issues of late and I’m trying to get those corrected. It appears to only be affecting those who use Internet Explorer. Hang with me. The weather has been a little wild lately with a heat wave and flooding rains for some. Things may just be getting started as we flip the calendar from May to June.

Today looks to be a good day for the bluegrass state. Partly sunny skies will boost temps into the 80-85 degree range for many.

The craziness gets started Thursday as a stout area of low pressure takes shape across the Mississippi River Valley. This low will then work into the Ohio Valley and Great Lakes on Friday. The setup with this system looks like something you would see in early Spring instead of the first day of meteorological Summer.

Temps on either side of this front may vary by as much as 30 degrees and this may help spawn a nasty outbreak of severe weather late Thursday into early Friday. Take a look at the storm on the GFS…

This one continues to get my severe weather attention and is something I will have more updates on over the next few days.

The air behind this system is chilly for this time of year. Look at the numbers from the NAM for Friday afternoon…

How about the first afternoon of June with temps in the upper 50s and low 60s. That’s crazy, but may not be the craziest part about the opening to Summer. Readings by Saturday morning may make a run toward 40 degrees if we can clear the skies out. That would put many areas into record low territory.

I keep saying it… extreme is the new normal.

Have a wonderful Wednesday and take care.

Good Tuesday everyone. I hope each of you enjoyed the big holiday weekend we are coming off of. Temps this past weekend were about as hot as you can get for this time of year with 3-4 straight days of temps in the 90s. Thunderstorms are riding into town to rescue us from the recent heat wave. Some of the boomers may be a little strong and the end of the week system is starting to get my attention.

Scattered showers and storms are out there today ahead of a cold front that is working in from the west. Locally heavy downpours will be possible and a few of the storms could be on the strong side. Here’s the radar to track all the action…

The front will check up just to our south and this may carry a shower or storm into Wednesday. We should also see a decent temp gradient setting up from north to south.

Low pressure is going to form across the Mississippi River Valley on Thursday. The latest trend in the models is to take this low just to our west and into the Great Lakes. That scenario would put us into a much more unstable environment into Friday and thus give us a better chance at severe weather. Check out the GFS…

That is a setup that we will need to keep an eye on. Outside of the violent March 2nd outbreak… our severe weather season has been very tame across the state.

Regardless of the severe threat… that system should bring a nice drink of water to our region as MUCH cooler air works in. Highs by Saturday may struggle to get to 70 for some areas.

Have a great Tuesday and take care.

Good Monday and happy Memorial Day. I want to say a big THANK YOU to all the brave men and women who have served and continue to serve our great country. This is one of the hotter Memorial Day weekends on record as highs ht the 90s for the third day in a row for many. We do have a big change ready to take place and this change means wetter and cooler weather is on the week ahead menu.

High temps today may be just a touch cooler than where we have been over the past few days. Highs should be right around 90 under a partly sunny sky. Some scattered storms may increase during the afternoon and evening. Your regional radar will help you do some storm tracking…

A better chance for showers and storms will be with us Tuesday as a cold front works across the state. Here’s how the GFS sees it…

Temps will be a little cooler with lower 80s for most of the state. Temps for the middle of the week will run around 80 for highs in the north and low 80s in the west and south.

An area of low pressure will develop to our west on Thursday and then work right on top of us by Friday. This may mean widespread showers and thunderstorms and a big cooldown as we usher in the start of the new month.The GFS…

Now THAT is a big time change.

Have a great Memorial Day and take care.

Good Sunday everyone. We continue to sweat through this Memorial Day weekend across the bluegrass state. Most areas hit 90+ Saturday and we will likely be even hotter today. Today is the day we have marked as having the best chance at setting record highs. There is some good news with this update as a big change is about to take place.

Low and middle 90s should be rather common in the commonwealth today. Plenty of sunshine and high humidity levels will continue to join in the heat wave parade and make things rather uncomfortable outdoors. The burn index is VERY high today so be sure to slap on the sunscreen. That’s your public service announcement of the day.

Memorial Day should see thermometers come in a few degrees from where they are today. It will still be hot, but I do think we have a better shot at firing up some afternoon and evening storms. This storm trend should increase Monday night into Tuesday as a cold front works in. Some locally heavy rainfall and strong storms will be possible.

Temps will come WAY down with readings around 80 for Tuesday and Wednesday.

The end of the week and weekend pattern is one that takes on a totally different look. All the models agree on an area of low pressure working right through here ahead of a nice push of cool air. Here’s the GFS…

That could be a nice rain maker around here if it works out like the models are suggesting. The push of cool air diving in to start June continues to look impressive…

That may give us a day or two with highs not too far from 70 for parts of the state. That works for me!

Have a great Sunday and take care.

Good Saturday everyone and thanks for taking time out of your busy weekend to check in on KWC. Our Memorial Day Weekend is off and running on a sweltering note. Record highs were being set in western Kentucky Friday and the chance for records all across the state will be with us today into Sunday. The good news about all of this? Well… it will not lock in and I continue to see signs of a wetter and cooler pattern taking shape.

I don’t have much to add about the weather in the short-term… it’s hot and it’s humid. Most areas will range from 90-95 today and Sunday with some hot spots in the west a bit hotter than that.

There is the chance for a popcorn thunderstorm or two this weekend… especially in the east. Those look to be few and far between. Showers and thunderstorms may try to increase some later Monday and this may take some of the edge off the heat. More widespread boomers may move in Monday night into Tuesday when some strong storms will be possible.

This may be the start of a more active and cooler period. Several of the models are trying to spin up a decent storm across the Ohio Valley by the end of next week. The European Model is among them…

That COULD bring some much-needed rains to the region. I am more confident of our temps cooling down and we may even go below normal for a bit as we say hello to June. The GFS Ensembles are all over it…

Keep your sweaty fingers crossed on that scenario playing out.

The Atlantic tropical season hasn’t even started yet, but we already have our second named storm. Subtropical Storm Beryl cranked up off the southeastern coastline last night and should become fully tropical at some point today. Here’s the latest from the National Hurricane Center…

A record-setting heat wave and the second tropical storm of the year.. in MAY. Nah… there’s nothing extreme about the weather.

Have a great Saturday and take care.

Good Friday and welcome to the long holiday weekend. This is usually billed as the unofficial kickoff to summer, but I think we can go ahead and take the “un” off the official. Temps over the weekend are under the assumption that we are celebrating the 4th of July instead of observing Memorial Day.

Highs today hit the low 90s west and flirt with 90 across central and eastern Kentucky. Temps will then surge into the 90-95 degree range for Saturday and Sunday and that may carry into Memorial Day. Add an increase in humidity to the mix and you have the recipe for a serious case of “air you can wear”.

Records highs are well within reach this weekend and that should give us something to track over the next few days. I also can’t rule out a popcorn storm or two… especially in the north.

A better chance for storms comes into the first half of next week as temps start to cool down some. This may eventually lead to some cooler air as we flip the calendar from May to June. This is something the GFS Ensembles have been all over for a few days now…

Now THAT would be most welcome around here.

Have a great Friday and take care.

Good Thursday everyone. We are inching closer and closer to the big Memorial Day Weekend and the heat is inching closer and closer to Kentucky. You will get a little taste of hot weather today with a nasty surge of summer air moving in over the next few days.

Highs today will head toward 90 across the west with low and mid 80s across the east. I still can’t rule out an isolated thunderstorm across the far east.

The heat really kicks into high gear on Friday as most areas head toward 90 with low 90s out west. You will notice a big uptick in the humidity levels and that trend will carry into the weekend. Highs from Saturday through Monday may break records across the bluegrass state. Readings in the low and mid 90s are a possibility each day. The higher humidity levels will only add to our sweat index.

While an isolated storm or two is possible…  I wouldn’t hold my breath on it. A better chance for showers and storms will work into the picture early next week and continue into mid-week. This is when we start to see the models coming around to a cooler change as we end May and say hi to June.

The European Model digs in a deep trough across the east…

The GFS Ensembles are also signalling cooler temps during the same time…

That would certainly feel welcome after this early season heat wave!

Have a great Thursday and take care.

Good Wednesday everyone. We are about to enter a stretch of weather that may rival some of the all time hottest May temps across parts of Kentucky. A rare May heat wave is about to engulf much of the central and eastern half of the country. Record highs will likely be set in many states during the process and all of this happens during our Memorial Day Weekend.

Our short-term weather isn’t so bad. We will see a few scattered showers and thunderstorms hanging around today across the eastern half of the state. This will help keep temps in the 70s east with sunshine boosting readings back into the 80s across the west. Here’s your regional radar…

Temps begin to take off on Thursday with highs well into the 80s under mainly sunny skies. Friday’s readings will be near 90 for most areas and that’s a sign of things to come. Low and mid 90s should be common across the state From Saturday through Memorial Day. Humidity levels will be on the increase and this will make it feel even warmer as we talk about a heat index in the upper 90s.

The GFS Ensembles show just how many areas will be seeing well above normal temps during this heat wave…

The Ensembles do give us a little bit of hope in the extended forecast as they have a cooler look to start June…

Let’s hope that’s the case. Regardless… it’s going to get hot this weekend and records may be falling across the state.

Have a great Wednesday and take care.