August 16, 2024
Summer Weekend Thunderstorms
By Joseph Renalds
Happy Friday Huskies!
It has been a while since the blog was updated, but we hope you have been enjoying the sunny and relatively calm conditions we have been having this summer. We will be getting some weather excitement this weekend, however, in the form of thunderstorms on Saturday night into Sunday morning.
An upper level low will move south along the coast today into Saturday and park itself off Oregon. The wind direction aloft will be from the southeast, which is somewhat unusual, and brings with it elevated moisture and atmospheric instability.
Because of this risk, the Storm Prediction Center has placed Western Washington in the convective outlook. Seattle is just outside the marginal category, but we could get placed into it before the storms arrive tomorrow. There is even an area of slight risk for portions of the mountains in Oregon and Washington where there is greater potential for severe conditions (larger hail and damaging winds).
The daytime conditions on Saturday will seem fairly tame with clear skies and temperatures getting into the upper 70s. It will not be until the evening hours that you may feel the air getting a bit stickier from the incoming moisture and clouds developing to the south.
Western Washington does not typically get above the T-Storms category and for good reason, we just do not often get favorable atmospheric setups for thunderstorms. This setup is much more favorable which means for a period we will see heavy rain, small hail, frequent lightning, and localized bursts of strong wind gusts. The storms will be moving from south to north with Seattle proper seeing the bulk of the storm activity between 8PM and the early hours of Sunday morning.
Rainfall totals are looking to be somewhat substantial for summer standards with a half inch to an inch possible. This will greatly depend on whether the stronger storms move over your location, but make sure to bring any items inside you do not want to see get drenched.
Once again, these thunderstorms are going to be more than the typical one clap of thunder and quick burst of heavy rain. Make sure to be prepared to get inside when the storms are approaching and be mindful of water ponding on roadways. There is also a Flash Flood Watch in place for the mountains so take this into account if you are planning to be camping or hiking on Saturday.
After Saturday the weather returns to what we have been seeing this week with high temperatures getting into the low-to-mid 70s and a chance of rain not returning until Wednesday.
Have a great weekend Huskies and for those finishing up finals for summer quarter, congratulations!
Reach forecaster Joseph Renalds at theuwdawgcast@gmail, on X/Twitter @TheUWDawgcast, or on Instagram @uwdawgcast.
