Star Date: 6 July 2016 Wednesday

Captain's Log
Hope you're having a great Wednesday.

For those of you not enjoying this most recent heat-wave impacting much of the Central U.S. and East there are only 78 days 2 hours and 40 minutes left of Summer! ;)

This week (6-12 July) will be the hottest in 4 years for the U.S. overall with average national rainfall but the extremes across the country are just that - extreme. In the Northwest and Northern Rocky Mountains the week will trend near record cold with maybe a foot of snow for the very highest peaks. For the U.S. overall, July 7th will be the hottest day of the year so far with an average national high temperature of 90F. This week last year was the 3rd coldest of the past 25 years so the year-over-year change is significant and a benefit to seasonal merchandise sales. Regionally the Northwest-Northern Rocky Mountains are the coldest in 25+ years with near record cold for early July, Southwest 4th coldest of the past 25 years, Southeast warmest in 23 years, South Central warmest in 5 years, Northeast warmest in 4 years and North Central warmest in 3 years.

Yesterday's heat in the Central U.S. brought heat indices as high as 115F to 120F and the heat is expanding now into the Northeast where the Philadelphia area will have fourdays with 100F+ heat indices on 95F temps. That's a normal, even slightly cool day in Dallas but we melt that hot in the Northeast.

Out in the Pacific there are two major tropical systems. Typhoon Nepartak is currently a cat 5 with winds gusts to 207 mph and likely to make a direct hit on Taiwan tomorrow as a cat 4 with 134 mph sustained winds and gusts to 167 mph along with 25 foot season on top of a major storm surge. A fish storm in the Eastern Pacific - cat 4 Hurricane Blas won't impact land. See our interactive mapping page to track storms real time anywhere in the world.

The battle between an unusually strong Jet Stream in the Northwest U.S. and a strong Bermuda High pressure in the Atlantic Ocean will bring several heat-waves interrupted by a few days of more normal July weather over the next two weeks. The next stronger heat-wave to impact the Central and Eastern U.S. peaks around 13 July and 19 July and very possible that the middle July event is more sustained with the first more widespread 100F temps. July overall looks to trend the 4th hottest of the past 25 years for the U.S. overall breaking the streak of 3 colder July's in a row. These hot trends look to expand into August so a lot of hot days ahead.

The overall global weather pattern looks like La Nina with Australia and Southeast Asia going from an El Nino drought to the wettest conditions in 25+ years here in June and the start of July. The hot weather in the U.S. is classic La Nina as is the very cold conditions in the Northwest U.S. So while not officially La Nina yet - the weather pattern across the world is polar opposite this time last year.

Have a great Wednesday. - Capt Kirk out.

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