New Summer Outlook

It's going to get hot, but how hot? That's what it always comes down to for Arkansas.

We have not had back-to-back-to-back summers without hitting 100° since 1948,1949, and 1950. A couple months ago I said the chance of us doing that would be extremely low, BUT MIGHT be a little greater upon looking at some of the newest data.

If we get into extreme heat (I define that as more than 100°), it would likely be mid to late summer. Meteorologist James Bryant has been doing some great research on this. As I say, if we dry out, look out! That's when temperatures can get out of hand. However, it does not look like early summer extreme heat. Remember, we define summer as the months of June, July, and August for meteorological purposes.

Old summer outlook a few months ago.

New summer outlook. Notice the confidence for above average temperatures are lowest in the central U.S. That's a change!

60 day rainfall anomalies show the central portion of the country wetter than the rest. Look at the dryness east and west! That's where the summer heat will likely kick off in full force. We'll need to dry out to get triple digit heat around here.

June outlook favors wetter than averages conditions around here. That could delay the dreaded heat and humidity a little longer.