Matt Lanza

In brief: A smattering of showers and thunderstorms will be with us today and tomorrow. More scattered storms are in play for Sunday. And then widespread rain and thunderstorms will be the forecast for much of next week, with locally heavy rain, some flooding, gusty winds at times, but also cooler temperatures.

A quick housekeeping note: The latest version of the Space City Weather app is available for Android and iOS now. Dwight will have a post out later this morning explaining the changes that went into this version and how you can report any bugs (not just the mosquitoes landing on your phone inside your house). As a side note, since beginning this journey with Eric almost 10 years ago now, it’s pretty cool to see how far this has come. No app is perfect, but I am proud of ours, and I hope you find it to be useful.

Today

We have two clusters of storms this morning in the area. The first is to the west of Sugar Land, dropping across Wharton County. A second area of storms extends from Kingwood east toward Beaumont. Those should continue to drop southward and gradually weaken. Look for a few more showers and storms to form this afternoon.

After failing to hit 90 yesterday thanks to cloud cover and rain-cooled air behind yesterday morning’s system, highs will top off in the low-90s today. It actually felt kind of nice yesterday!

Weekend

Saturday actually looks like a fairly decent day overall. Yes, there will be a chance of showers or a thunderstorm. But on the whole, rain chances will be at a relative low compared to what’s ahead Sunday and beyond. So look for a smattering of afternoon showers and highs in the low-90s.

Sunday looks a little busier. We’ll have a little more moisture and enough support for more in the way of scattered thunderstorms. Lows will be in the 70s, with highs around 90 or a little hotter depending on rainfall.

Monday through Thursday

If you have plans next week that involve anything outdoors, make sure you also have an alternative lined up. It looks like a chaotic, busy week in the atmosphere over Texas. We will have numerous vigorous disturbances pushing across Texas with a large trough in the upper atmosphere. This means numerous daily rain chances, locally heavy rain, a few strong storms, and cooler temperatures than normal.

It remains very difficult to predict exactly when the heaviest rain will be. Right now I’d hone in on later Monday or Tuesday and again later Wednesday or Thursday for the best odds, but that may shift around a bit. What we do know is that the amount of moisture available in the atmosphere will be 100 to 150 percent of normal, which typically translates to at least a couple rounds of heavy rainfall. The Weather Prediction Center currently has forecasts for excessive rain out through Tuesday and has the region at least in a marginal risk (level 1 of 4) each day. I would say to expect an additional 3 to 6 inches *on average* across the region. Some places may see a bit less than that, but it’s conceivable that a couple places will see more with enough storm activity through next Thursday. We will likely have to dust off the flood scale again Sunday or Monday and keep it up through Thursday or Friday. This would be primarily for street flooding concerns. Check back with us for more perhaps on Sunday.

While thunderstorms are likely, severe weather is merely possible, not likely. Any severe storms should be isolated and brief. There will be gusty winds at times with any storms, and severe or not, that may be both unsettling to you and the power system. So periodic temporary power outages can’t be ruled out through next week. I get the anxiety, trust me.

As noted, cooler weather will arrive next week thanks to the clouds and rain.

For example, on Wednesday, like some people’s taste in music, we will struggle to get past the mid-80s. These suppressed daytime highs will continue into late week before we slowly rebound next weekend. Nighttime lows will not necessarily play along, as they should remain in the 70s.

In brief: Additional rain is likely over the coming days, including a round of widespread moderate to heavy rain this morning, after some parts of the area saw as much as 2 to 3 inches yesterday. The most widespread activity will probably occur next week. Also today, we discuss the mosquito misery in the wake of Hurricane Beryl.

We had some gnarly thunderstorms in some parts of the area on Wednesday afternoon. I just happened to be driving from Pearland back to Houston as the storm over the southwest side of the city exploded.

While the power outages were not prolific, it certainly caused street flooding. The three bullseyes yesterday were on the Fort Bend/Brazoria County line, in the Bellaire/West U area, and just south of the Ship Channel in Pasadena and Deer Park. This is what can happen on days like this, so just be prepared if storms strike that they could produce quick street flooding in addition to prolific lightning and some hail.

Today

A line of heavy, but non-severe storms is moving into the northern fringes of our area this morning. Expect this to push southward through mid-morning, which will disrupt your morning commute. Give yourself a couple extra minutes this morning to deal with this.

Rain rates are generally around or below an inch an hour, winds are around 30 to 35 mph or so as it moves in, and lightning will accompany the storms. Some of this could weaken as it drops into Houston proper. But there is some pretty healthy activity on the western side of this cluster, particularly heading into Waller County and perhaps back toward Sealy and Columbus. Additional storms could fire with daytime heating after that for the afternoon but those will be a bit trickier to pinpoint. Once everything moves through, we should be able to sneak back into the low-90s for highs.

Friday through Sunday

Much like yesterday, all three days will feature at least isolated to scattered showers and thunderstorms each morning into afternoon. Some folks will see downpours capable of producing a quick 1 to 3 inches of rain and street flooding, while others will see little. Most places should get at least some rain at some point between tomorrow and Sunday though. Look for highs around 90 or so all three days.

Monday through Wednesday

A slightly more vigorous upper level weather pattern arrives next week, and with a cold front in name only sitting near us, it should all act together to produce numerous showers and thunderstorms across the region. Rain could be locally heavy and storms could be locally strong. Again, we are not currently highlighted for any severe weather risks, but as is often the case in summer, we could see a “pulse” of strong to locally severe storms each afternoon somewhere in the area. Usually in those cases, storms become severe and drop back below severe limits all within an hour or so.

Today it appears that through next Thursday morning, most folks will see 2 to 5 inches of additional rain. Clearly after some places saw 1 to 3 inches in an hour yesterday, it’s plausible that someone will see more than 4 or 5 inches more through next week. But it’s impossible to pinpoint who and when. So for now, assume your lawns will receive a healthy watering, and you’ll have to dodge hefty downpours at times.

Mosquito madness

Speaking of that. A number of you have commented regarding the plague of mosquitoes we have seen that started about a week after Beryl hit. I can confirm myself that these are not your typical mosquitoes; these suckers are the size of Volkswagens and mean business. I had my assumptions, but I reached out to the Harris County Public Health Department to inquire how Beryl played a role. Dr. Max Vigilant, Director of the Mosquito & Vector Control Division gave me some answers. Here were my questions and Dr. Vigilant’s complete answers.

Q:  Is it our imagination, or have we seen an uptick in mosquitoes in the wake of Hurricane Beryl?
A: Yes, there was an increase in the number of “floodwater mosquitoes” after Beryl. These mosquitoes lay their eggs in soil, mud, grass, wooded areas, etc. Their eggs can stay dry. Once impacted by water, they will hatch. These mosquitoes prey on heavy rains, floods, and weather events.

Q: Why do you think we started noticing it about 6 days after the storm?
A: We noticed it several days after the storm because that is when they start hatching. As I mentioned, the eggs can withstand drying for a long time. As soon as water touches them, they hatch. Within 5 to 7 days, they will become adults. A typical cycle can take up to 10 days.

Q: Do we expect this to level off?
A: Yes, it will be just like it did after the Derecho event in May. As temperatures rise and sunshine is present, many water bodies will dry up. This will reduce the number of floodwater mosquitoes as their habitat will dry off. We must remember that they will lay eggs in the moist areas and await the next rain event.

Q: What can people do to try to make their properties less hospitable to them?
A: People must clean up their surroundings and remember to “Tip, Toss, Take Action.”

• Tip over open containers that hold water, especially after the rain.
• Toss out those water-collecting containers they don’t need or don’t use.
• Take Action by protecting yourself from mosquito bites. (Use an EPA-approved insect repellant, wear long sleeves and long pants when working outdoors, and clear out drains.)

Now that residents are cleaning up, they should store the debris, old fencing, etc., where they cannot collect or hinder water flow.

Thanks to Dr. Vigilant and Harris County Public Health for answering this for us! As a note: With a rainy pattern continuing over the next week, do as much as you can with respect to tipping and tossing above!

In brief: Houston begins a slow transition back to a wetter weather pattern today, with higher rain chances tomorrow and Friday. No severe weather is expected at this time, but we cannot completely rule it out. It will remain fairly hot and humid, but “less hot” weather and even better rain chances may arrive early next week.

Hot weather will continue today, but shower chances begin to increase, and those chances will stay with us into next week. As we try to get back to a sense of normalcy after Hurricane Beryl, Eric and I just want to highlight and thank our partners at Reliant for their continued support of our site, as well as the community. Reliant and NRG just announced a $2 million contribution for near-term and longer-term Hurricane Beryl relief and assistance, including charitable contributions, customer assistance, and more. We thank them for that and their continued support and partnership with Space City Weather!

Today

Conditions have been fairly dormant in the rain department the last couple days. That will begin to change today. We already have some showers offshore this morning, as well as near the coast in Galveston and Chambers Counties. Look for additional scattered showers and storms to pop up with daytime heating today. It will still be plenty hot and humid, so expect highs in the mid-90s.

The added moisture will actually make today feel more uncomfortable than recent days as well. We still have about 50,000 customers without power in the area, so it will be another difficult day for those folks. We would strongly encourage continuing to check on those without power and ensure they have a cool place to go. The combination of heat and humidity will probably make today feel the worst that it has since Beryl.

Thursday and Friday

Both days will carry a pretty healthy chance of showers and thunderstorms. Storms will drop in from the north tomorrow afternoon and evening. Additional scattered storms will be with us Friday. While we are not currently highlighted in any severe weather risks for tomorrow or Friday these types of north to south moving storms can occasionally deliver a rogue severe storm or two. As I mused in the comments to someone yesterday, my five year old and I look at radar each evening (his doing, not mine!), and I’m always struck by how many random storms in the South can become severe in summertime. My point being: We aren’t highlighting severe weather risk the next few days, but it’s entirely possible we see something isolated stick out from the overall mess of showers and storms.

Highs will be in the mid-90s ahead of Thursday’s storms and near 90 on Friday with lows in the 70s.

Weekend

Both days will feature sun and clouds. We’ll probably see morning showers or storms near the coast spreading inland each late morning or afternoon. Not everyone will see rain, but many of us will, though hopefully it doesn’t totally ruin outdoor plans. Highs will be near 90 with lows in the 70s.

Monday and Tuesday

Rain chances increase again here as a more vigorous upper level system moves closer. This should lead to numerous to widespread showers and thunderstorms Monday and/or Tuesday with highs in the 80s.

Lows will remain in the 70s, as a high humidity air mass remains in control despite the cooler daytimes.

Rain chances should slowly settle down and temps slowly increase again by next weekend. All told, we’re probably looking at a widespread 1 to 3 inches of rainfall through next week with higher totals near the coast and lesser totals west and southwest of Houston.

In brief: We’ll have one more pretty quiet day before rain chances begin to increase. This will lead to cooler weather and healthy, daily chances of rain beginning this weekend and continuing into much of next week. It won’t feel terrible for midsummer.

We managed 94 degrees at Bush yesterday and 93 at Hobby as fairly typical mid-summer weather continues. We’ve got one more day of it, and then the rumblings of change begin.

Today

Copy and paste yesterday’s weather for the most part.

Wednesday

Look for the day to start as a repeat of Monday and Tuesday, but by afternoon, shower chances will begin to increase. Scattered showers and storms are likely. Call it about a 30 to 40 percent chance or so. I might say that the highest chances will be south and east of Houston tomorrow. We’ll check in on this obviously tomorrow morning. Highs should peak in the low to mid 90s with lows in the 70s.

Thursday

We will have an additional 40 to 50 percent chance of afternoon thunderstorms. Prior to that, expect a mix of sun and clouds with highs in the low-90s. Lows will be in the mid-70s.

Friday

Here’s where I’d begin to expect scattered to more numerous showers and thunderstorms and some locally heavy rain. Temperatures may struggle to get to 90 on Friday, depending on the exact coverage and timing of storms.

Weekend

Both Saturday and Sunday should see scattered showers and thunderstorms each afternoon. All of this will be caused by a cool front that should stall out, or really kind of wash out in our area. The location of the stall will help determine the exact focal point of storminess into the weekend, but most areas should see at least some rain between Thursday and Sunday and some areas will see several rounds of it as well.

Next week

It’s too soon to get super specific, but we will be seeing numerous shower and storm chances next week, at least through midweek before perhaps easing up some toward next weekend. We will probably have multiple days with highs failing to reach 90 degrees due to cloud cover and rain. Despite this, there will be little relief from the humidity which should remain high. So nighttime lows will continue to remain in the 70s. But the periodic rain and storms and the overall cooler air mass should help lead daytimes to feel not terrible for late July.

We may also get a round or two of Saharan dust next week, and any rain can aid in minimizing those air quality impacts a bit too.