Summer-lite weather lies ahead for most of this week, with a few modest rain chances

Houston’s weather this week, aside from scattered thunderstorm chances today, should be pretty boring. But boring in the summer is not necessarily bad! This sure beats early season heat or, as we will be reminded this week with the official season start on June 1, hurricanes. By the way, we’ve got some news coming about the Atlantic hurricane season coming that you will want to check out on Thursday.

Tuesday

The region saw scattered showers and thunderstorms on Memorial Day, with some fairly isolated regions experiencing heavy rainfall. The pattern will be similar today, with the best chances for rainfall running from the mid-morning to mid-afternoon hours. Much of the area will not see rain, but a few isolated areas may quickly pick up 0.5 to 1.5 inch of rain under slow-moving storms. Skies, otherwise, will be mostly sunny with a high temperature of about 90 degrees. Winds will be variable, and light. Low temperatures will drop to around 70 degrees.

Expect some isolated showers and thunderstorms to pop up later today across Houston. (Weather Bell)

Wednesday

A similar day to Tuesday, albeit with less atmospheric moisture to work with. This should knock back rain chances to about 20 percent during the afternoon hours. Skies should be mostly sunny for the most part, with highs of around 90 degrees.

Thursday and Friday

As high pressure builds over the region it will squeeze rain chances down to around 10 percent each day. The days will be remarkable similar, otherwise, with mostly sunny skies and highs of around 90 degrees. The air will remain, for early June at least, somewhat dry. Afternoon dewpoints in the mid-60s will not exactly feel spring-like, but they won’t be sultry and summer-like, either. That, no doubt, is coming soon.

Saturday and Sunday

As the high pressure ridge backs off this weekend, we should see rain chances increase modestly. But at this point I don’t have much confidence in whether that means a daily chance of 20 percent or 40 percent. For the most part, I’d anticipate at least partly if not mostly sunny skies with highs of around 90 degrees.

Houston’s weather this week is steady-eddie as temperatures go. (Weather Bell)

Next week

I don’t have great confidence in next week’s forecast, I’m afraid. I do think rain chances will increase a bit, starting either Sunday or Monday. There are also some scenarios in which we start to push toward the mid-90s by some point next week, but such a summer heat wave is not locked in stone.

Memorial Day Weekend will end with some scattered downpours

Good morning! Memorial Day is starting off with some downpours south and east of Houston, and that will become more common as the day wears on.

Isolated showers have developed south and east of Houston on Monday morning. They will expand north and west through the afternoon. Click to enlarge radar from 9:15 AM. (RadarScope)

Some of these showers have been heavy, producing as much as 1 to 2 inches of rain over the last hour at Kemah, for example. Additionally, there have been reports of waterspouts over the bays and Gulf. Just stay aware if you’ll be on the water today.

As we move into afternoon, watch these showers expand north and west. Not everyone will see rain, but those of you that do may see a healthy amount in a short time, in addition to lightning. If you hear thunder today, make sure you get indoors, as periodically, storms like this can produce lightning rather far away from the storm itself. Those that see downpours today could pick up 1 to 2 inches or even a bit more. Others will see nothing.

Storms should subside after sunset, but I am thinking we’ll see a little continued activity north and east of Houston for a time, while new showers will probably develop after 1 to 2 AM near the coast or bays. More scattered showers and storms will be likely tomorrow, but again some will get a soaking, while others get nothing.

Temperatures after Tuesday look to average near to slightly above normal for Houston, while humidity will be near to slightly below normal. (Weather Bell)

The forecast for the rest of the week looks pretty calm, less rainy than it appeared a couple days ago. Temperatures will be in the 80s the next two days, but by Wednesday we’ll probably be back to 90 or better each day, with lows in the 70s. That said, the humidity continues to look at or slightly below normal, so while hot it may not be quite as oppressive as usual heading into early June. More tomorrow. Enjoy the day!

With a fairly relaxed holiday weekend ahead for Houston, we will keep this short

We start today’s post off by wishing everyone a safe and pleasant Memorial Day Weekend, and as we honor those that have fallen in defense of our freedoms, we thank those who have served and are currently serving our country today.

Simply put: The weekend looks great with nothing worse than a “typical” chance of PM showers, particularly Sunday and Monday. Next week looks a touch more interesting, but we’ll cover that more in depth Monday.

Friday through Monday

The period between now and Monday looks pretty steady state. Expect plenty of sunshine and highs near 90 each afternoon. Morning lows should be in the upper-60s to low-70s. Humidity won’t exactly be low, but it will not be oppressive by Houston standards.

Friday is an ozone action day, and it’s possible we will see more of this through the weekend, with conditions unhealthy for sensitive groups to ozone. (NOAA)

We’ve been dealing with ozone action days most of this week, and today will be no exception. Lots of sun and lots of traffic means lots of ground level ozone. Those sensitive to high ozone levels will want to take it easy today and probably again this weekend too. We may also see a little haze as some lingering wildfire smoke from both Canada and Central America may come back toward us this weekend, but hopefully it will be clearer than we saw earlier this week.

In terms of rain? We’ll go for a requisite 10 percent or so chance of a stray shower today and tomorrow. Sunday, we could bump those chances up to 15 or 20 percent, and by Monday they could be more like 20 to 30 percent. Most areas will likely stay dry through the weekend, but just know that Monday carries the highest chance of a wetting shower in the area. As a result of slightly higher rain chances, Monday could be a couple degrees cooler as well.

Next week

After Monday, things become a little more unsettled with some disturbances swinging through. This should allow for slightly cooler temperatures and slightly higher rain chances from Tuesday into Wednesday. Additional shower chances may arrive toward next weekend.

The 8 to 14 day outlook for Texas shows slightly higher confidence for below average temperatures, allowing summer to start on a relatively mild note for our area. (NOAA)

Overall, the pattern over Texas is likely to remain cooler than average and perhaps wetter than average over the next 10 to 14 days. We will see how long that lasts. Look for an update on Monday morning to set the table for next week. We will also share some thoughts on hurricane season next week as well. Enjoy the weekend!

A splendid Memorial Day Weekend awaits the greater Houston area

Good morning. If you have outdoor plans this weekend that involve a beach, pool, or sunbathing, you’re in luck. We’re going to see partly to mostly sunny skies, reasonably dry air, and highs right around 90 degrees throughout the weekend. The next few days will also see uncharacteristically low dewpoints of around 60 degrees during the daytime, so Houston won’t feel quite as humid as normal. Enjoy this while it lasts.

Thursday

Today will be sunny and warm, with high temperatures in the upper 80s to 90 degrees. Winds will be light, out of the northeast, at 5 to 10 mph. There is perhaps a 5 percent chance of rain showers along the coast. Lows tonight will drop to around 70 degrees.

Dewpoints on Friday afternoon should be almost pleasant for the Houston region. (Weather Bell)

Friday

Let’s hope you liked Thursday, because Friday is the same—only rain chances are 0 percent instead of 5 percent. Dewpoints look to be at their lowest today, perhaps in the upper 50s during the afternoon hours.

Saturday

Skies will be partly to mostly sunny, with highs around 90 degrees. Lows will drop to around 70 degrees.

Sunday

Should be more of the same.

Monday

As high pressure begins to weaken its grip on the area, the overall flow will turn more southerly and Houston’s atmosphere will start to moisten. This may return more clouds to the area, humidity levels will start to rise, and there should be perhaps a 20 percent chance of showers during the afternoon.

Yeah, so, it’s a pretty easy forecast to write. (Weather Bell)

Next week

Most of next week probably will see highs of around 90 degrees, partly sunny skies, and a modest chance of afternoon showers. Oh, and humidity is coming back as dewpoints rise. Summer is knocking on the door, y’all. Matt will have you covered tomorrow, so let me wish you a safe and happy and fun Memorial Day Weekend.