8/14/2013 Daily Update: Drier Second Half of Week, Utor Arrives in China

Good morning everyone!

Showers and storms have cleared the area and our prize is a beautiful, dry second half of the work week. In fact, no rain chances are in sight between now and Sunday. A delightful stretch on the way!

TODAY: Mostly sunny with lower humidity expected. Highs in the low to mid 70s. Breezy with NW winds 10-20 mph, could gust up to 30 mph.

TONIGHT: Mostly clear conditions with lows in the upper 40s to lower 50s. Patchy fog is possible. Winds dying down overnight.

TOMORROW: Sunny with highs between lower 70s in the Berkshires to upper 70s in the Pioneer Valley. Winds from the W at 5 to 10 mph.

NATIONAL WEATHER

• Turning less humid across the Northeast. High pressure leading to pleasant weather and plenty of sunshine for the region.
• Soaking thunderstorms remains in the forecast for the Southeast and Gulf States due to a stubborn stalled front.
• Sunny in the West Coast. Hot and dry in the deserts of the Southwest, cooler along the coastlines.
• Thunderstorm chances for the Plains up to Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming along the convergence.
• A ridge in the jet stream builds in the Pacific Northwest allowing hotter air into the area. Showers for the NW Washington tonight from a coastal low advancing into Vancouver.
• The tropical wave is disorganized but starting to taking shape south of Cuba. Gulf Coast states should continue to watch in the coming days.

WORLD WEATHER

• Typhoon Utor out in the Western Pacific made landfall in Guangdong Province in Southeast China last night. Death toll in the Philippines has risen to 7.
• A tropical wave off the coast of Africa is organizing well. NHC gives it a 40% chance of developing in the next 48 hours.
• Sunny and dry for most of Europe. Chance of showers and storms in the northern part of the continent.
• Showers and damp weather for Southern Australia, particular in the southeast corner (South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania). Mostly dry for the rest of Australia.

EARTHQUAKES

• M6.6 earthquake off the coast of Columbia: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usb000j275#summary

SPACE WEATHER

• There were a few C-flares yesterday.
• Sunspots 1817 and 1818 poses a continued threat for M-class and X-class solar flares. NOAA forecasters are estimating a 30% chance of M-class flares and a 5% chance of X-class flares today. 
• A solar wind stream from a coronal hole should reach Earth on August 16-18.
• Kp Index reached 4 for a brief time.

Courtesy of spaceweather.com