Category Archives: Drought

NYC Weekend Weather – Jul 28, 2016

July 28, 2016Climate, Drought, Flooding, NYC, Rain, Snow, Storms, Thunderstorms, Weather Update, Weekenddrought, flash flooding, flooding, high pressure, low pressure, new york city weekend weather, new york city weekend wx, nyc weather, nyc weekend weather, nyc weekend wx, rain, thunderstorms, tstorms, weatherLei Zhao

We finally get a break from the heat along with some much needed rain in the next few days. Saturday looks to be the best day of the weekend. High temperatures this weekend will range anywhere between 15-20ºF cooler than last weekend.

Overnight – lows in the mid-70s as a low pressure center passes almost directly over NYC. Because the low will be right over us, the main area of the heaviest rain will remain north of the city.

Friday – showers punctuated by periods of steady, heavier rain as bands of rain develop and wrap around the low pressure center as it tracks east. High temperatures in the low-80s with overcast skies. This low pressure system will thrive off the humid, tropical airmass in place over the region. A flash flood watch has been issued to reflect the possibility of some areas receiving 1-2″/hour rains. Embedded thunderstorms are possible, but are unlikely to reach severe limits. The bulk of the rain will fall overnight into the morning hours, and should begin tapering off in the afternoon from west to east.

Saturday – high pressure passes briefly giving us a mostly dry day with partly sunny skies with highs in the mid-80s.

Sunday – another disturbance pushes through from the south providing more chances for rain and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy with highs in the low-80s otherwise.

Monday – skies gradually clear and temperatures warm back into the low-mid 80s.

Tuesday – warm and sunny with highs again in the mid-80s

Drought Conditions Forecast to Persist

Despite the rains this weekend, many parts of the area remain under a moderate drought, having received only about 25% of normal precipitation for this past month. The outlook for the season calls for persistence of drought conditions as below normal to normal precipitation will be insufficient to break the drought.

NYC Weather Update – Jul 25, 2016

July 25, 2016Climate, Drought, NYC, Rain, Severe Weather, Thunderstorms, Weekendcold front, drought, new york city severe weather, new york city weather, new york city wx, nyc severe weather, nyc weather, nyc wx, severe thunderstorms, severe weather, thunderstorms, weatherLei Zhao

Recent weather headlines have been dominated by the heat. This will continue through most of the week, with relief not really in sight until Friday. There will be a chance for severe thunderstorms today, but otherwise, there will be little in the way of rain.

Rest of today – mostly sunny, hot, with highs in the mid-90s. Humidity will make it feel like the lower-100s. The Storm Prediction Center has placed parts of the region under a slight risk for severe weather today. This relates to what appear to be multiple line segments of strong to severe thunderstorms advancing ahead of a weak cold front that look to impact the area during the PM rush.

Tuesday – with the weak cold front above passing through, there will be some drop in humidity. However, temperatures are still expected to rise into the mid-90s under mostly sunny skies.

Wednesday – temperatures finally start to back off the mid-90s into the low-90s under mostly sunny skies.

Thursday – increasing clouds, high near 90ºF.

Drought Continues to Grip the Northeast

Drought continues to worsen and is now prevalent in many parts of the Northeast, with areas in Western New York and Massachusetts particularly hard hit.

NYC Weather Update – Jul 12, 2016

July 12, 2016Climate, Drought, NYC, Rain, Thunderstorms, Weather Updatecold front, drought, high pressure, new york city weather, new york city wx, nyc weather, nyc wx, rain, thunderstorms, weatherLei Zhao

This week started off with refreshing weather Monday. Temperatures will rise slowly during the course of the week with Friday being the hottest day. The only precipitation chance appears to come on Thursday when a cold front approaches the region.

Rest of today – mostly sunny, seasonably warm, with a high in the low-mid 80s.

Wednesday – temperatures begin slowly warming up as high pressure which has been sitting right over us moves to our east. This will allow a warmer southwesterly flow of air into the region.

Thursday – warmer still, possibly with high temperatures hitting 90ºF in some spots. In general, high temperatures will reach into the upper-80s. A chance for showers and thunderstorms will build in the afternoon along with the heat and the approach of a cold front.

Friday – partly cloudy, hot with a high near 90ºF.

Drought Expands Despite Rain

With a dearth of rain continuing, some areas of the northeast (much of Eastern Massachusetts) have been placed under an area of severe drought. For us, a moderate drought persists, despite the fact that we’ve had several rounds of drenching rain over the last couple weeks.

NYC Weekend Weather – Jun 24, 2016

June 24, 2016Climate, Drought, NYC, Weather Update, Weekendcold front, drought, high pressure, new york city weather, new york city weekend weather, nyc weather, nyc weekend wx, nyc wx, weatherLei Zhao

The run of sunny, dry weather that we’ve had (with the exception of Thursday this past week) continues into the weekend. With no significant rain anticipated in the next week, drought conditions continue to worsen over the region. Next week, high pressure to the west will drive cooler than normal temperatures, with high temperatures in the low-80s.

Rest of today – sunny with a high in the low-80s.

Saturday – a copy of today, sunny with a high in the low-80s.

Sunday – slightly warmer, but sunny again with highs in the mid-80s. High pressure will be firmly in control.

Monday – mostly sunny during the day, highs again in the mid-80s, chance for showers and thunderstorms overnight into Tuesday as a cold front passes through.

Cooler than Normal Next Week, Drought Worsens

As the cold front referenced above moves through next Tuesday, it will leave a high pressure center with Canadian origins in control. This setup favors cooler temperatures, and a drier airmass. Hence, the Climate Prediction Center shows that much of the eastern half of the US will should experience below normal temperatures next week.

The continued lack of significant rainfall has led to the expansion of moderate drought which now covers much of northeastern New Jersey, southeastern New York, and all of Long Island.

NYC Weather Update – Jun 20, 2016

June 20, 2016Climate, Drought, NYC, Rain, Storms, Thunderstorms, Weather Updateclimate, drought, full moon, new york city weather, nyc weather, nyc wx, rain, solstice, summer solstice, thunderstorms, tstorms, weatherLei Zhao

We couldn’t have asked for better weather this past weekend, and Sunday in particular was a real gem for all the fathers who had outdoor plans. The run of nice weather gets a couple interruptions this week for some much needed rain, with the first half of the week heating up before a cool down mid-week.

Rest of today – mostly sunny with a high temperature in the low-80s. Today also marks the first official day of summer, which begins at 6:34PM EDT. For the first time in 70 years, the summer solstice will also coincide with a full moon.

Tuesday – a cold front pushes through overnight into Tuesday. There could be some showers/thunderstorms in the early morning hours, but these are unlikely to linger much beyond daybreak. Once the frontal boundary clears, winds pick up inland from the west, ushering in a warmer, though less humid airmass. Temperatures should rise steadily into the upper-80s to near 90ºF in a couple spots under clearing and mostly sunny skies.

Wednesday – pleasant, sunny, with high temperatures in the mid-80s.

Thursday – the next chance at rain comes with a low pressure system moving during the afternoon hours Thursday. Uncertainty remains as to the exact track of this incoming storm system. A southerly track would result in less potential for severe weather/flash flooding, and this is the scenario that forecast models seem to suggest now. Either way, it will be a cooler day with mostly cloudy skies and temperatures in the upper-70s, with a chance for showers and thunderstorms later in the day into the overnight hours.

Friday – much improved conditions with mostly sunny skies and highs in the low-80s.

Drought Worsens, Likely to Persist this Summer

The continued lack of significant rainfall this Spring has led to increasingly dry soil. The US drought monitor now has some regions of the Northeast in an area of moderate drought. The outlook for the summer suggests that the drought will persist, without much improvement.

NYC Weekend Weather – Jan 29, 2016

January 29, 2016Climate, Drought, Noreaster, NYC, Snow, Weather Update, Weekendblizzard, drought, high pressure, new york city weather, new york city wx, noreaster, nyc weather, nyc weekend weather, nyc weekend wx, nyc wx, rain, snow, weatherLei Zhao

You’d be forgiven if you didn’t believe that a record-setting Nor’easter blizzard happened less than a week ago. A week of much above average temperatures and warm weather has quickly melted more than half of the snowpack that was left after the blizzard dropped 26.8″ (.1″ short of the all time record) in Central Park, breaking the single day storm total snowfall record with a new high of 26.6″. Except, of course, those huge snow mounds that are trapping your parked car. Warm weather, with high temperatures near or above 50ºF this weekend means that even more of this snow will melt away. Whatever’s left will likely be completely washed away mid-week next week when we’re expected to hit temperatures near 60ºF with thunderstorms possible.

Rest of today – mostly cloudy with a high near 40ºF. A passing rain/snow shower caused by a weak passing disturbance in the upper atmosphere is possible this afternoon around 1PM.

Saturday – brief clearing caused by an area of high pressure overnight will give way again to increasing clouds with high temperatures around 40ºF again.

Sunday – the high pressure moves quickly off to our east Sunday, allowing for clockwise return flow from the southwest to bring in warmer temperatures in the upper 40s under partly sunny skies.

Monday – warm temperatures continue with highs topping out around 50ºF and partly sunny skies.

Cooldown Coming

Don’t get too used to the warm temperatures because after mid-week next week, cold air returns to the Eastern United States for a period.

Blizzard Brings Drought Relief

One of the best parts about this blizzard was that it brought along some much needed precipitation precisely to areas of the region that most needed it. As you’ll see below, since the blizzard past the area of New York State experiencing moderate drought has decreased from 6.80% to 2.04%, largely because areas of moderate drought in the NYC region and Long Island have gotten slammed with huge amounts of snow that will be replenishing the local watersheds as it melts.

NYC Weekend Weather – Dec 04, 2015

December 4, 2015Climate, Drought, NYC, Weather Update, Weekendclimate, climate prediction center, drought, el nino, enso, high pressure, new york city weekend weather, nyc weather, nyc weekend weather, weatherLei Zhao

A quite and mild weekend is in store for the region with high pressure in control of the weather throughout the period. Temperatures should climb steadily as winds shift and persist from the southwest. We could see high temperatures near 60ºF by Sunday.

Rest of today – clear to mostly sunny, with highs around 50.

Saturday – sunny, with high temperatures in the low-50s.

Sunday – milder, and sunny again with high temperatures in the upper-50s to near 60ºF.

Monday – clouds look to be increasing on Monday with a storm system approaching from the south expected to pass on Tuesday. Temperatures will be cooler in the mid-50s.

Seasonal Climate Outlooks

As we are entering into the winter, it’s worth looking ahead at what the seasonal climate out looks are from the Climate Prediction Center.

Drought conditions are expected to improve over many areas of the nation, and the persistent moderate drought in our region is forecast to end.

Temperature and precipitation are forecast to be above normal for the region. As you’ll note from the images below, some fairly significant deviations from normal are expected across large portions of the United States, due in large part to the effects of a strong El Niño that’s been gripping the Eastern and Central Pacific for months now.

The chart below shows you the sea surface temperature anomalies for the Pacific – notice that a large swathe of the equatorial Pacific from about the international date line east is experiencing extremely warm temperatures for this time of year – a full 5ºC above normal in large areas. This is why climate forecasters can be more confident than usual in their outlooks for temperature and precipitation this season.

NYC Weekend Weather – Nov 19, 2015

November 19, 2015Climate, Drought, NYC, Rain, Weather Update, Weekendcold front, drought, high pressure, new york city weekend weather, nyc weather, nyc weekend weather, rainLei Zhao

A soaking rainstorm passes through the area later today and then paves the way for cooler, drier air to take over this weekend. By the end of this weekend, temperatures will only be in the low-50s and even upper-40s going into Monday. Looking ahead, temperatures return to normal ranges in the low-50s next week before another warmup around Thanksgiving. Currently, it looks as though the first week of December will open up with cooler than average temperatures.

Rest of today – cloudy and warm with a steady wind from the southeast. Scattered light rain is occurring across parts of the area now. The heavier rain should begin falling later this afternoon (around the PM rush) as more moisture works its way in from the south and the storm system closes in, providing better atmospheric conditions for rain. The rains are still much needed for most of the Tri-State area (in particular Souther Connecticut and Long Island) that remains in the grip of a moderate drought.

High Resolution Rapid Refresh model simulated radar for 5PM EST

Friday – rain ends overnight into Friday morning. Skies clear rapidly with temperatures topping out in the mid-50s.

Saturday – high pressure builds in behind the frontal boundary that will pass early Friday. This high pressure will shift winds to the west and then northwest, bringing in cooler, drier air from Canada. Temperatures will only be around 50 on Saturday as a result.

Sunday – pretty much a clone of Saturday, mostly sunny skies, cool with highs around 50ºF.

Monday – cooler, with high temperatures that may struggle to hit 50ºF.

NYC Weather Update – Oct 26, 2015

October 26, 2015Climate, Drought, Rain, Weather Updatecold front, drought, low pressure, nyc weather, nyc wx, warm front, weatherLei Zhao

The weather story this week will feature a storm system that will be drawing on the remnant moisture from Hurricane Patricia and producing some heavy rain on Wednesday as it passes through the region. Aside from a wet day Wednesday, the remainder of the week looks to be dry with decently warm temperatures.

Rest of today – clear with high temperatures near 60.

Tuesday – mostly sunny with clouds increasing later in the day. High temperatures again near 60.

Wednesday – a low pressure center is expected to form over the Great Lakes region and strengthen Wednesday. A warm front attached to this low pressure center will pass through the region late Wednesday. Increasing chance for more widespread rain as the day progresses with a high temperature in the mid-60s. Some urban flooding could occur. Most of the heaviest rain will likely be falling in the late evening and overnight hours.

Thursday – could see a few showers in the morning, but then skies should begin to clear and allow for temperatures to warm up into the mid-60s again before a cold front drops through.

Drought Update

We’re hoping for the rains Wednesday to make a dent in the stubborn moderate drought that continues to cling to the metro area, in particular Long Island.

NYC Weekend Weather – Oct 7, 2015

October 8, 2015Climate, Drought, Rain, Thunderstorms, Weather Update, Weekendcold front, columbus day weather, drought, new york city weather, nyc weather, nyc weekend weather, nyc wx, rain, thunderstorms, warm front, weatherLei Zhao

The three day weekend ahead will feature some idyllic autumn weather with plenty of sun for outdoor activities if you’re heading out of town on a getaway. The only blemish in this otherwise stretch of superb weather will be a round of showers and thunderstorms entering the city Friday afternoon and passing through Friday night.

Rest of today – we’re starting off with mostly cloudy skies, but skies should clear rapidly within the next couple hours. After that, we get a mostly sunny afternoon with high temperatures near 70. Clouds re-enter the picture later this evening in advance of an approaching disturbance that will bring us rain on Friday.

Friday – overnight tonight, a warm front will push through the area, such that by Friday morning, winds will switch to the southwest. This will allow for warm air to surge up ahead of a cold front that will be passing through Friday night. This setup is favorable for the possible development of thunderstorms ahead of the cold front. Chances for rain increase steadily Friday into Friday night. Otherwise, mostly cloudy skies with high temperatures in the upper-70s to near 80.

Saturday – the cold front moves quickly through the area Friday and by Saturday, skies should clear up, while temperatures cool off into the mid-60s.

Sunday – another picture perfect autumn day with high temperatures in the mid-60s and ample sunshine.

Monday (Columbus Day) – stretch of nice weather continues into Columbus Day, with temperatures slightly warmer in the upper-60s to around 70.

Drought Update

The drenching rains two weeks ago helped alleviate drought conditions over large portions of the Northeast. However, moderate drought conditions stubbornly persist in the NYC metro area, especially in Long Island.

LZ | Weather

Weather updates & posts for NYC region