Clear skies and cooling down in Michigan, quiet for the next few days other than the occasional hit & run thunderstorm in the afternoon. It is summer in the Midwest, what do you expect? Let's take a look and see what we have going on...
STARS APLENTY IN THE AREA: Not much to talk about in around the state other than some clouds up around Traverse City and Petoskey. Have a look at the infrared satellite image...
Temperatures in the 70's at all reporting stations throughout the state. Still a bit damp with dewpoints into the 50's but nothing truly oppressive.
PATTERN ANALYSIS: Upper air dynamics are ridge west/trough east, and the pattern isn't very progressive. That means you'll see common themes in the forecast for the next several days. Those are mainly clear skies along with hot and humid conditions that could bring an isolated PM thunderstorm to spots. I'm not really seeing any widespread rains in the cards until late Friday and into Saturday, as an upper disturbance works into the area that will bring temperatures down and rain chances up. I'm thinking that until the weekend, Jackson and Lansing will top out at 89 degrees with humidity up into the uncomfortable range.
NOTHING SEVERE TO WORRY WITH: We note no widespread severe weather risks the next three days according to the Storm Prediction Center. The closest thing to Michigan is on Day 3, Saturday, a "marginal" risk of severe storms across northern Illinois and eastern Iowa.
SOME CHANGES SATURDAY: Forecast data is suggesting a disturbance working through during the Friday/Saturday time frame. I'll know more tomorrow whether this is just an upper impulse, or something a bit more substantial, like a weak frontal boundary. Whatever it turns out to be, clouds will be on the increase, temperatures will come down some, and we'll see scattered to perhaps numerous showers and thunderstorms in the area. Expect readings to come out of the upper 80's and even lower 90's and roll back into the lower 80's. I'm expecting our dewpoints to drop at least a few degrees as well, so it should feel a bit more comfortable.
MORE RAIN CHANCES SUNDAY/MONDAY: Another chance at some shower and storm activity comes Sunday into Monday, as an upper wave works through the area, again increasing the chances of showers and storms to about 50/50 in any given spot.
LOOKING DOWN THE LINE: Next week will see a cooler, drier pattern set in, with readings comfy and in the upper 70's. I expect lower humidity values in the area as well. Rain chances should stay fairly low, but, as is the norm in summertime in the Midwest, I can't rule out the chance of an isolated pop-up shower or storm, not at least until Tuesday.
There's your outlook, I hope you have a great night!
