While Labor Day vacationers flocking to beaches in the northeastern United States may appreciate the early September heat wave, others may simply be uncomfortable by midweek. File photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
A noticeable warm-up is extending across the northeastern states for the first half of this week, AccuWeather forecasters said Sunday.
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This early September heat wave may be welcomed by vacationers flocking to lakes and beaches for the Labor Day holiday, but it can feel too hot for residents participating in other outdoor activities.
A change in the upper level pattern will be responsible for the rise in temperatures moving into the Northeast early this week and is expected to persist for several days this week.
“A large area of high pressure in the Southeast will pump heat and moisture into the Northeast for Labor Day and beyond,” he explained. AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Heather Zehr.
With temperatures soaring into the 90s and even topping the 100-degree mark in the coming days, some locations will see the hottest temperatures they've seen all summer. Philadelphia is on track to reach the upper 90s f by early to midweek, challenging daily temperature records Monday through Wednesday.
Over the past few months, the City of Brotherly Love has reached its peak summer temperatures of 95 degrees on June 2nd and July 13th. Although the meteorological summer is over, Philadelphia is forecast to exceed that mark several times this week as the heat wave settles in across the region.
To put it into perspective how noticeably warm these conditions will be in parts of the Northeast for early fall weather, forecasters outline how expected temperatures for this week compare to typical values this time of year.
“Temperatures on Monday will be 10-15 degrees above normal from inland New England to the mid-Atlantic, while coastal areas in New England will be closer to the historical average. week,” Zehr said.
It has been several years since cities like Pittsburgh and Columbus, Ohio, hit the 90-degree mark in the first week of September. In 2018, many temperature records were set in the Northeast and Ohio Valley, and September 2018 earned its place as the third warmest September in the northeastern US since 1895. Even individual states like Delaware, Maryland and West Virginia set records in 2018 for the warmest September on record.
The Capital of the Nation it may be one of the spots that climbs 100 degrees this week, a mark that has yet to be reached this year. Tuesday through Wednesday, residents may see their best chance to reach or even exceed 100 degrees as the heat continues to endure across the mid-Atlantic states.
Spots in northern and western Virginia, western Maryland, and south-central Pennsylvania have seen precipitation well below the historical average for the last half of the summer.
Locations in Virginia such as Winchester and Staunton have collected only 21% and 10% of the typical monthly precipitation for August, respectively, placing them both in either the unusually dry or even moderately dry category, according to US Drought Monitor.
From June 1 to August 31, observations from Winchester showed they received only 4.39 inches of rain, which is about 38% of what they normally do during the summer months.
AccuWeather Forecasters warn that dry conditions and soils can provide a setting that allows the air above the surface to heat up more easily, leading to more intense heat than in areas that have seen abundant rainfall. As a result, the hottest mid-Atlantic temperatures this week from the heat wave are likely to increase in a corridor from Virginia to southern Pennsylvania.
By Thursday, most cities in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic interior will feel a sense of relief from the early September heat wave. In several areas, the maximum temperature drop of 4-8 degrees is expected from Wednesday to Thursday.
By Friday, high temperatures in the 70s may return to New York, northern and western Pennsylvania and central Ohio. Residents across Virginia and even Washington can see temperatures drop from the 90s and 100s early in the week to the 80s by the weekend.
Not only will the temperature difference be noticeable, but a shift to lower dew points this weekend will help make for more comfortable conditions overall.
However, a storm will follow throughout northern tier of the country Early this week it will approach the eastern US by mid-week, bringing wet weather in the form of showers and thunderstorms to the Northeast. These storms will have the potential to affect outdoor plans later this week as they slowly move across the region.
