Meteorologist Mark

Whew, I don’t know about you but Saturday was a brutally hot and humid day! Sunday seemed a bit better, especially with the clouds around. Temps this week will be hot, as well, but humidity levels will be a bit lower, especially tomorrow and Tuesday. Humidity is what you have to watch out for this time of year. After all, it’s July so it’s going to be hot. All we can hope for is lower humidity. The slightly lower humidity will hang around through Wednesday, before picking back up on Thursday-Saturday.  We still can’t rule out an isolated storm through Wednesday. Much like last week, a weak front will drop into our area at the end of the week, bringing better chances for showers and t-storms. The best chance for stronger storms looks like Friday. The good news is that, as of now, Sunday looks great! Highs around 80 and really low humidity. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for that forecast to hold true!

You know, even if a storm isn’t severe you still have to watch out for that deadly lightning. I noticed that our weather fact of the day involves a man who was working on his fence near Livingston on this day in 1999. The fence was struck and the current traveled to the farmer, knocking him unconscious. He was given CPR by a neighbor, rushed to a hospital, and survived. He was very lucky! If you’re caught outside try your best to get indoors. Stay away from any electrical appliances and plumbing. If you’re in your car make sure you’re not touching anything metal or electrical. The tires don’t protect you (a very common myth) but the metal sheath around you does. The current is then directed into the ground.  This is the time of year when storms can pop up on a whim. If you hear thunder roar, go indoors.  And if you see dark clouds gathering, go ahead and make your way inside. You may not get to hear the warning of thunder if you’re the first strike!

You all have a great Monday and let me know if you have any weather questions!

The well-advertised biggest heat wave of this summer season is still in full swing. The slow-moving front that I’ve been talking about has slowed a bit more and it now looks like today will be a carbon copy of yesterday. Hot, humid, with an isolated storm. It may actually be a bit hotter today than it was yesterday, with highs at or slightly above 90, since we don’t have the early morning clouds to fend off the sunshine like we did yesterday. Tonight, overnight lows will stay in the 70s. Nashville is forecasting a very warm low temp tonight of 77! On Sunday, that slow-moving front finally creeps closer and that will set off more storms in the afternoon and evening. We may even see some of those linger overnight. Some storms Sunday will be more than capable of becoming severe, with large hail and damaging winds the main threat. On Monday, we’ll see much of the same, with perhaps a bit of an increase in showers and storms. The bad news is that the front isn’t going to bring much relief from heat next week, but it will bring slightly lower humidity levels. That’s a plus in my book!

The tropics remain quiet, for now. There are indications that things will dramatically pick up the second to third week of August. I’ll keep you posted!

I’ll also keep you posted on Sunday and Monday’s severe storm potential. Right now, I don’t expect anything too incredibly organized, like a derecho, but I can’t rule that out 100%. I’ll let you know if I see anything change with that! For now, be safe out in this heat today!

We are very lucky to have these clouds around this morning! They’re going to keep us from hitting 90 degrees today. These clouds are blowing off some of the disturbances that have been pounding parts of the Upper Midwest over the past few days. They’ve had several derecho events (like what we had Memorial Day weekend). We will still be plenty warm and humid, and an isolated storm can’t be ruled out. Yesterday we saw a storm slide from Byrdstown to Livingston and another one slide from near Oneida to Wartburg. We should see much of the same isolated activity today. Tomorrow, we have  a slightly better chance of storms as a weak front gets closer. Those rain chances are even higher for Sunday and Monday. Some of the storms Sunday could be stronger, with that front passing through. Storms remain for Monday as the front continues to slowly make its way across the state. This time of year the fronts move SO slow. By Tuesday we’ll start to notice humidity dropping as the front sags to our south. We’ll enjoy that lower humidity through the end of next week.

I found a very interesting article this morning about the coming eclipse.  We’re so fortunate that the path of totality will pass right over Crossville! For 25 facts about the eclipse, check out this article! One cool fact was that, “Depending on your surroundings, as totality nears you may experience strange things. Look. You’ll notice a resemblance to the onset of night, though not exactly. Areas much lighter than the sky near the Sun lie all around the horizon. Shadows look different. Listen. Usually, any breeze will dissipate and birds (many of whom will come in to roost) will stop chirping. It is quiet. Feel. A 10°–15° F drop in temperature is not unusual.” How cool is that?! I’m so excited! I’ll be covering it all through weatherTAP’s social media. Here’s that article:

http://cs.astronomy.com/asy/b/astronomy/archive/2014/08/05/25-facts-you-should-know-about-the-august-21-2017-total-solar-eclipse.aspx#.WXH3UHI6hIg.facebook

It’s hot here in Crossville but you don’t have to go far for it to be much worse. While we flirt with 90 degrees the next couple of days, folks over toward Nashville will be flirting with 100. Thank goodness for this plateau, right!? I think tomorrow will be our hottest day, with highs touching 90 and maybe a degree or two above that. We have a slightly better chance for a storm this afternoon and evening, though it’s still slim. A complex of storms near Chicago is sliding southeast and outflow boundaries from that could set off a t-storm during the heat of the day today. We can’t rule out an isolated storm tomorrow, but chances are slimmer than today. By Saturday, the storm chances tick back up a bit and those chances get even greater by Sunday and Monday as a weak cold front approaches. Clouds should keep highs away from the 90-degree mark from Saturday through Monday. After that front clears out of here on Tuesday, we should see lower humidity for the middle to end of next week.

Today marks the 48th anniversary of our first Moon landing! Shortly before 11:00 pm EDT, we heard the words, “That’s one small step for man, one giant lead for mankind” uttered by Neil Armstrong. The move sparked an interest in science for so many kids, and showed the world that the US was technologically superior to everyone. In fact, the technology used in designing the space suits is the same technology used for hazmat suits. Cordless devices were also an invention stemming from the Moon walk mission, among countless other inventions we take for granted today. A total of 12 men have now walked on the moon, with the last being Eugene Cernan in 1972. Since 2009 the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has been circling the moon, mapping out the surface in the finest detail. There are currently no plans to return to the moon, but there are definitely plans in the works for a new mission that will take us to Mars. Pretty cool stuff, huh?

Pictured below: Armstrong walks on the moon.