Houston last officially recorded a 100-degree temperature on July 29, 2017—hitting 100 degrees right on the nose. This was, in fact, the only 100-degree day during all of last year. Perhaps we will get that lucky again this year with a paucity of very hot days, but some of the higher resolution models indicate the mercury will get to the century mark later this week, perhaps by Friday or Saturday. If this occurs, it should not come as too great of a surprise, as the average first date of Houston’s first 100-degree day is July 24th during the calendar year.
Typically, Houston records about five 100-degree days in a given year, although inland areas (further away from the Gulf waters in the 80s) typically record more, and areas south of Interstate 10 fewer.
Tuesday
Now we come to the actual forecast. Which is pretty easy. Expect sunny and hot conditions, with highs in the upper 90s. Overnight lows will only fall slightly below 80 degrees. The Saharan dust that was so prominent on Monday should begin to fade a bit.
Wednesday and Thursday
More of the same, with highs in the upper 90s.
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
Just for fun, it appears as though Mother Nature is going to kick it up a notch. This weekend we may see highs of 99 or even 100 degrees. This may require the National Weather Service to issue heat advisories and really, these temperatures are no joke. If you’re going to be outside during the day, protect yourself from the sun and the heat.
Next week
The operational run of the European model continues to show absolutely no rain in Houston for the next 10 days. However, most of the global models do suggest that rain chances may pick back up after that, toward the end of next week, circa July 27th. I’ll be honest, however. Once we get into these summer patterns in late July and August, with persistent high pressure, the models have a difficult time predicting when they’re actually going to break down.
Hi Eric, this may seem like a dumb question, but what do you mean when you say “100 degree day”? Does that just mean at some point during that day the temperature reads 100 degrees, or does it have to be sustained for a certain period? I ask because I thought we already hit 100 this year– at least my “unofficial” phone and car thermometers said so!
I believe it means the daily maximum reaches 100F, but this is strictly temperature in the shade, not heat index. So if you’re leaving your car outside in the sun the combination of direct sunshine & humidity are going to push the heat index (i.e. the real experienced temperature) well above 100 F.
Following on from Prashant’s comment, if you watch various outdoor sporting endeavors (e.g., tennis, autoracing, etc.) the ‘track’ or ‘court’ temperature will run much higher than the ambient air temperature.
THANK YOU FOR MENTIONING THAT!!!
HEY! It is is 11;15 AT NIGHT! Heat index is 93.
RIGHT!!! Doesn’t count at the airport under a tree without heat index
Hurry up November !!!!
A. “Paucity” of very hot days? We’ve already had most of May, June, and half of July. That’s already 60+.