Tuesday, August 20, 2013

the rain and the sun... (pm.20.aug.13)>

Tuesday's stats:

Low temp: 63.0F (17.2C)
High temp: 72.1F (22.3C)
Rainfall since midnight: 1.41" (3.6cm)

We've had a little of everything today.  There was more sunshine than we've seen on perhaps any day of this entire month so far, but we also had some moderate to heavy rain during the pre-dawn hours and another downpour during the middle of the afternoon.  Clouds and occasional fog made up the rest.  Most of today's rainfall total happened prior to sunrise, but the shower this afternoon deposited a quick 0.42" (1cm) in my rain gauge.  Just to add to the variety, humidity dipped to around 80% during the early afternoon, and my high temp in the upper part of town was the warmest since the 4th of August.

I've recorded more than 6" (15cm) of rain since mid-afternoon on Sunday -- only a bit more than 48 ago.  But we've also had some nice glimpses of sunshine during that period, which is maybe some foreshadowing of what awaits us during the coming several days.  There will be a definite drying trend throughout most layers of the atmosphere as this week moves on, which should allow our average humidity levels to drop into a more comfortable range and also give us a few hours of sunshine now and then.  However, the air mass will remain moist enough to produce scattered rain showers as it sloshes back and forth along the front ranges of the mountains, with a continuing chance of a few heavy downpours.

To sum it up... it looks like we're going to get teased with a bit of a post-monsoon vibe, but the risk of sudden heavy showers should keep us aware of the reality that we still have a few weeks remaining in this monsoon season.

Check the tabs above for the CURRENT FORECAST, along with other info.