The Heat Makes A Blazing Return!

Good Friday everyone and welcome to some real deal HEAT! The high temps and humidity levels may actually reach dangerous levels over the next few days so please slow down and take it easy out there. If there is some good news out of all this… it’s that we get a good shot to dry things out for a little while.

While there will be a small chance for an afternoon of evening thunderstorm popping up… it is the heat and humidity that will steal the show into Saturday. Low to middle 90s will be possible both days as the feel like temp reaches 100 or a little better. Western Kentucky can see the heat REALLY get out of control with a heat index in the 105-110 range.

You can track today’s heat here…

Current Temps

Current Heat Index

High Temp

A cold front will move in here later in the day Sunday and bring our next round of showers and thunderstorms. High temps for Sunday should head toward 90 before the boomers arrive.

Tropical Storm Bonnie formed Thursday evening in the Bahamas and will work across Florida into the Gulf of Mexico. This should stay a weak Tropical Storm… even into the Gulf. Here is the latest from the National Hurricane Center…

Have a great Friday and take care.

15 Comments

MarkLex on July 23, 2010 at 4:35 am

Can I ask a question

Say them temp reaches 115 in Phoenix AZ with a heat index of 110. And the temp in any given area on the east coast reaches 95 degrees with a heat index of 105, is the 105 heat index more dangerous simply because of the humidity vs the dry air heat? Just curious. I know dry heat is better than moist in regards to comfort, but wasn’t sure if a heat index of 110 in dry air is different.

MarkLex on July 23, 2010 at 4:37 am

Forgive my typos

patty on July 23, 2010 at 5:02 am

Oh No Chris say it ain’t so! I can’t say enough how I hate the heat. How long do we have to endure all this humidity? Will there be any dry air this summer at all?

Teacher Nate on July 23, 2010 at 11:43 am

Bonnie moved through last night…and other than a some rain and some wind….I’ve been in thunderstorms back home in the ole’ bluegrass state that have been much worse. The wind is still blowing a bit, but the sun is trying to come out.

MJ on July 23, 2010 at 1:07 pm

MarkLex, you are exactly right. 110 degrees in dry air is very different than 97 degrees with a dewpoint greater than 70. If you watch Phoenix’s observations during the day, you will see the temp go into the 100’s, but the dewpoint will drop back into the 40s or 50s. That would produce a heat index very close to the actual air temp.

Echo on July 23, 2010 at 1:35 pm

You are right Mark. The body cools itself through perspiration and evaporation. The drier the air, the quicker the evaporation of your sweat, which in turn cools the body. High humidity slows the evaporation which makes a person feel hot.

I lived in Las Vegas for 5 years. I’ve never felt a stranger sensation than climbing out of a swimming pool in 105 degree heat to start shivering and actually feel cold for a couple minutes. The water starts evaporating from the entire body all at once. of course, once their is no more water to evaporate you will feel hot again.

I’ve always found that 105 was the magic temperature out there. Anything below that and I could go outside, work in the yard, do whatever and it didn’t bother me, as long as I drank a lot of water. But once it was 105 or above, then it was time to limit my exposure.

WXman on July 23, 2010 at 3:18 pm

Another interesting thing to consider is that the shortwave radiation coming into Earth from the sun is not what we “feel”. It’s the longwave radiation that is thereafter soaked up and emitted that makes us hot. So you’ll notice a lot of people in the desert wearing long pants and long sleeved shirts. Some old farmers here in this part of the country used to work in the field with long clothing too. If you keep the sunlight from even hitting your skin, your body will stay cooler despite what it may seem.

Jason on July 23, 2010 at 6:22 pm

Its ridiculously hot.. My thoughts are with the folks cleaning up from the floods in this kind of weather.

Nate on July 23, 2010 at 7:22 pm

Boy it;s HOT…
It’s hotter than a four balled tomcat thats for sure…

Jen on July 23, 2010 at 7:48 pm

There is a girls softball tournament in Shelbyville tomorrow. It’s going to be miserable…There are always parents who are unprepared and those kids get heated up fast. A couple of years ago several kids had to be taken to the hospital. Play smart folks…this heat is dangerous!

feederband on July 23, 2010 at 8:36 pm

….and its making me more nervous than a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs….

MarkLex on July 23, 2010 at 11:06 pm

I KNOW!!!!!!! It’s amazing how the sun on a day like today can just ZAP the energy right out of you…Imagine anyone who has to be out in it (cleaning up that mess in Pikeville) and all those people who have no homes anymore…It has to be miserable. I have always been lucky to never have lived in any sort of flood zone or not even close to one.

FatGuy on July 24, 2010 at 12:07 am

My thoughts are on pie and ice cream…

mmmmmm.

Char on July 24, 2010 at 2:21 am

My little 7 yr old grand daughter played in the National Invitational Softball Tournament in Bowling Green last weekend. She said she got so hot, she almost died. It would have been even worse this weekend.

WXman on July 24, 2010 at 2:35 am

The heat index today was higher than a cat’s back.

MarkLex on July 23, 2010 at 4:35 am
Can I ask a question
Say them temp reaches 115 in Phoenix AZ with a heat index of 110. And the temp in any given area on the east coast reaches 95 degrees with a heat index of 105, is the 105 heat index more dangerous simply because of the humidity vs the dry air heat? Just curious. I know dry heat is better than moist in regards to comfort, but wasn’t sure if a heat index of 110 in dry air is different.
MarkLex on July 23, 2010 at 4:37 am
Forgive my typos
patty on July 23, 2010 at 5:02 am
Oh No Chris say it ain’t so! I can’t say enough how I hate the heat. How long do we have to endure all this humidity? Will there be any dry air this summer at all?
Teacher Nate on July 23, 2010 at 11:43 am
Bonnie moved through last night…and other than a some rain and some wind….I’ve been in thunderstorms back home in the ole’ bluegrass state that have been much worse. The wind is still blowing a bit, but the sun is trying to come out.
MJ on July 23, 2010 at 1:07 pm
MarkLex, you are exactly right. 110 degrees in dry air is very different than 97 degrees with a dewpoint greater than 70. If you watch Phoenix’s observations during the day, you will see the temp go into the 100’s, but the dewpoint will drop back into the 40s or 50s. That would produce a heat index very close to the actual air temp.
Echo on July 23, 2010 at 1:35 pm
You are right Mark. The body cools itself through perspiration and evaporation. The drier the air, the quicker the evaporation of your sweat, which in turn cools the body. High humidity slows the evaporation which makes a person feel hot.
I lived in Las Vegas for 5 years. I’ve never felt a stranger sensation than climbing out of a swimming pool in 105 degree heat to start shivering and actually feel cold for a couple minutes. The water starts evaporating from the entire body all at once. of course, once their is no more water to evaporate you will feel hot again.
I’ve always found that 105 was the magic temperature out there. Anything below that and I could go outside, work in the yard, do whatever and it didn’t bother me, as long as I drank a lot of water. But once it was 105 or above, then it was time to limit my exposure.
WXman on July 23, 2010 at 3:18 pm
Another interesting thing to consider is that the shortwave radiation coming into Earth from the sun is not what we “feel”. It’s the longwave radiation that is thereafter soaked up and emitted that makes us hot. So you’ll notice a lot of people in the desert wearing long pants and long sleeved shirts. Some old farmers here in this part of the country used to work in the field with long clothing too. If you keep the sunlight from even hitting your skin, your body will stay cooler despite what it may seem.
Jason on July 23, 2010 at 6:22 pm
Its ridiculously hot.. My thoughts are with the folks cleaning up from the floods in this kind of weather.
Nate on July 23, 2010 at 7:22 pm
Boy it;s HOT…
It’s hotter than a four balled tomcat thats for sure…
Jen on July 23, 2010 at 7:48 pm
There is a girls softball tournament in Shelbyville tomorrow. It’s going to be miserable…There are always parents who are unprepared and those kids get heated up fast. A couple of years ago several kids had to be taken to the hospital. Play smart folks…this heat is dangerous!
feederband on July 23, 2010 at 8:36 pm
….and its making me more nervous than a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs….
MarkLex on July 23, 2010 at 11:06 pm
I KNOW!!!!!!! It’s amazing how the sun on a day like today can just ZAP the energy right out of you…Imagine anyone who has to be out in it (cleaning up that mess in Pikeville) and all those people who have no homes anymore…It has to be miserable. I have always been lucky to never have lived in any sort of flood zone or not even close to one.
FatGuy on July 24, 2010 at 12:07 am
My thoughts are on pie and ice cream…
mmmmmm.
Char on July 24, 2010 at 2:21 am
My little 7 yr old grand daughter played in the National Invitational Softball Tournament in Bowling Green last weekend. She said she got so hot, she almost died. It would have been even worse this weekend.
WXman on July 24, 2010 at 2:35 am
The heat index today was higher than a cat’s back.

15 Comments

Follow Chris Bailey

Account Login

Weather Archives