Eric Berger

Rain likely today, but real heat looms in the distance

Good morning. The second half of June has been pretty dry for Houston, so all things considered the region could use some rain as we head into the warmest 10 weeks of summer. Fortunately much of the region should see just that today.

Tuesday

A weak front will sag into Houston today, meeting up with air moistened by the Gulf of Mexico. This should lead to some fairly widespread showers and thunderstorms developing before or by around noon, and sliding southward toward the coast. The most likely time for rain is between noon and sunset. I’m not expecting anything too extreme in terms of rainfall totals, and am hopeful half or more of Houston will pick up 0.25 to 1.0 inch of rainfall. Highs should climb into the low 90s.

HRRR model forecast for rain at 3pm CT on Tuesday. (Weather Bell)
HRRR model forecast for radar conditions at 3pm CT on Tuesday. (Weather Bell)

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Wetter weather possible before a hot July 4th weekend

After a mostly hot and dry weekend (some areas, particularly west of Houston weren’t entirely dry, of course) we’re going to see a pattern change this week, with some better rain chances returning. And don’t begrudge the rain—we’ll need it for what’s ahead.

TODAY

As high pressure to the northeast of Houston continues to move off we should see some slightly better rain chances today, especially when temperatures near their peak levels in the low 90s this afternoon. Some of these showers could be locally heavy, although probably brief. For parts of Houston that don’t see rain (likely a majority of the city) conditions will be pretty hot, with the heat index rising into the low 100s.

TUESDAY

On Tuesday most of the forecast models show a frontal boundary pushing into the Houston region. Now this isn’t going to bring significantly cooler air, but it will bring some instability that should lead to fairly widespread showers, and the potential for some locally heavy rain that might briefly flood some streets. But I’m not anticipating any widespread flooding problems because these storms should develop and then weaken pretty quickly. Highs will depend upon the amount of rain coverage. For most areas accumulations should be well under 1.0 inch.

NOAA rain accumulation forecast for now through Thursday. (Weather Bell)
NOAA rain accumulation forecast for now through Thursday. (Weather Bell)

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Typical summer-like pattern to reign over Houston for awhile

Good morning. It’s Thursday. So we’re edging closer to the weekend, Houston!

TODAY

Houston’s not directly under a ridge of high pressure today, but we’re close enough that any rain showers that do develop should be fairly isolated. For the most part we’re going to be hot, humid and sunny with highs in the low- to mid-90s. Heat index values may climb into the low 100s.

Texas is seeing typical summertime lows for late June this morning. (Weather Bell)
Texas is seeing typical summertime lows for late June this morning. (Weather Bell)

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A few isolated showers, but mostly hot and humid until the weekend

Good morning. A few streamer showers are moving northward quickly through Houston this morning, but with high pressure building these rains should come to an end later this morning.

TODAY through FRIDAY

It’s not like the suffocating ridges of high pressure that Houston sometimes sees during the summer (thank goodness) but moderately high pressure should keep the region mostly dry, sunny and warm during the next three days. Look for high temperatures in the low- to mid-90s with only some isolated showers.

Houston will remain on the southern edge of high pressure over the next few days. (Weather Bell)
Houston will remain on the southern edge of high pressure over the next few days. (Weather Bell)

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