Updated 130pm CDT Monday / 16 July 2012

…. Rain Chances Linger ….
…. A Tropical Air Mass Continues Across the Area ….
…. A Daily Chance of Rain Showers and Thunderstorms Next Few Days …

On this Monday… a surface high pressure area is located over the southeastern USA  and the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. A weak trough.. or line.. of low pressure extends southward from a low over southeastern Colorado into far southwest Texas. Another surface high pressure area is over western Colorado and New Mexico. As a result of this surface pattern, a light southerly surface wind is prevailing across our area.

In the upper levels of the atmosphere, the upper high pressure ridge, acting like a lid on the atmosphere, continues broadly over the US central plains east southeastward into the Mississippi Valley. An area of upper level low pressure area is over west Texas. As a result of the upper air wind flow, the upper level winds are light to moderate southerly over our area.

A moist tropical and unstable air mass continues across the area. The upper part of the atmosphere has grown a little more stable over the last 24 hours as the upper low to our west drifts westward resulting in a continued slow stabilization of our atmosphere.

As a result, rain chances will continue to diminish into mid and late week. I will remove the chance of rain from my forecast by Thursday and Friday and continuing through the balance of the seven day forecast.

With increased sunshine and the “lid” trying to reestablish itself in our atmosphere, afternoon high temperatures will be warming back to or just above seasonal averages by the end of the week into the weekend.

For Austin and south central Texas… tonight will see a partly cloudy sky with widely scattered evening rain showers and thunderstorms with lows in the 70s. Southerly wind. For tomorrow, partly cloudy with widely scattered rain showers and thunderstorms with highs in the 90s with a southerly wind.

Have a good Monday night and Tuesday…
Meteorologist Troy Kimmel

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