Rain relief from the heat, steamy weather holds

People often talk about humidity, but the dew point is the real number to watch. Anything above 75° is extremely humid, and that’s exactly what we’re dealing with: a lot of water in the air, making it feel muggy. We’ll drop to around 80° tonight, staying warm and humid, with temperatures rebounding quickly into the low 90s by tomorrow afternoon. Winds will shift out of the southwest, pulling more Gulf moisture in. That means dew points could reach the 80s, pushing the heat index to around 112° across inland areas. Heat advisories are in effect again for Wednesday. At the coast, yellow flags are flying, and the Gulf is looking more like a lake, flat and calm. Highs near 92–93°, with only an isolated storm chance. In fact, we’ll see less rain than today, thanks to that southwest flow, which tends to protect the coastline by pushing the sea breeze boundary inland. Earlier storms developed along that sea breeze and were carried southwest by mid-level high pressure. That high is shifting west, so isolated to scattered storms will be possible again tomorrow and into Thursday, with 30–40% coverage both days. The humidity will remain high, so heat indices will likely stay in advisory range through the end of the week. Tropics: The Eastern and Central Pacific are very active, with two storms out there now and three more likely forming soon. The Atlantic, meanwhile, is quiet. We’re watching two yellow-circled areas, but no immediate concerns. However, by August 4–5, we’ll watch the subtropics for possible development. And by August 12, the Main Development Region of the Atlantic should start to wake up. That’s right on schedule — 90% of tropical activity typically occurs between August 20 and October 20. We’re not there yet — but we’re getting close.