Need A Sweater This Morning?

This morning was certainly cool across Central Virginia! Several people have mentioned to me on their way into the station this morning that they had to run back indoors and grab a sweater before heading to work. Temperatures fell into the 40's in west-central Virginia this morning, dipping to 47 in Charlottesville and 44 in Staunton. In Richmond at the Airport, our low was 56 degrees, well below the average low for September 2nd of 64. But cool as it was, we still didn't get close to breaking the record low for this date of 49 degrees from 1948. Here are some of the other low temperatures this morning:

Lynchburg 52
Emporia 53 (Average Low for this date is 61)
Farmville 53 (Average Low for this date is 60)
Danville 54
Fredericksburg 54
Petersburg 55
Williamsburg 60

Morning low temperatures will steadily creep back closer to seasonable norms by this weekend, and high temperatures will follow suit as well back into the 80's.

Future Of Erika Uncertain

Computer forecasts are not as consistent with Erika as they were with Bill and Danny. There is a large variance with the track and strength of this storm beyond three days. For these reasons, we will be tracking this storm very carefully in the coming days.

Erika Named Just Named

August Recap

Although the last day of August felt like the depths of Fall, for Richmond August was the 9th warmest on record! This average temperature (79.9 F) is based on the total average temperature, not just the high or low of each day. Our average low temperature seems to be the primary culprit for keeping that overall average temperature up higher than is typical. The average low temperature in August at RIC was 70.3 F, the 5th warmest August low temperature average on record. It should be noted that over the past decade or so, the airport site has been trending its night low temperatures warmer, possibly as a result of urban expansion near that recording station. In other words, more concrete and buildings mean more daytime heat is remnant in those surfaces, taking longer to cool overnight than a grassy field would.

In other climatological news...Norfolk Airport had its 3rd wettest August on record! The measurement site there recorded 13.22" for the month, with most of that falling in just a few individual days when storms stalled over the city. You may recall the several flooding events over the past month in Norfolk were a result of those nearly stationary thunderstorms dumping several inches, often in just a few hours. In case you're wondering, Norfolk's top two wettest Augusts were 1942 (15.61") and 1992 (14.32").

Here are some of the rain totals from the rest of Central Virginia for August:

Newland 6.9"
Coatesville 4.9"
Richmond 4.0" (that was near-average)
Charlottesville 3.6"
Danville, 3.4"
South Hill 2.7"
Farmville 2.6"
Lynchburg 2.4"
Fredericksburg 1.6"
Williamsburg 1.4"
Empria 1.2"
Petersburg 1.1"

August Ends With A Taste Of Fall!

Break out the hot apple cider, pumpkin muffins, and warm vegetable soup! On this last day of August, Fall must be impatient to begin with a strong cold front sweeping much of the country Sunday into today. Early Monday morning, the cold front has already cleared Virginia, and continues to push into the eastern Carolinas. With highs expected today in the low 70's, it seems like Fall is providing a mild preview of the approaching cooler season. Surface high pressure is settling in for the week from the Great Lakes to the Mid-Atlantic. This morning, temperatures are falling into the 30's in Wisconsin and Michigan and 40's through much of the Great Lakes states.

Our climatological averages in Richmond for August 31 are a high of 84 and a low of 65, but we will be close to the record cool high temperature today of 70 from 1999. This time of year, we can still have the last gasps of high Summer heat or the early breaths of Fall. The record high for this date is 102 set in 1953, and the record low is 46 from 1934.

This taste of Autumn will not last for too long, though, as temperatures will gradually return to average levels in the mid-80's by the end of this week.

Erika Could Form Soon

We've been watching a strong tropical wave in the Atlantic for the past couple of days. Latest satellite imagery shows some broad circulation. If this continues to strengthen (which most computer forecasts indicate), then this will become Erika. There is another circulation to the northwest of this wave that we will also watch, but conditions don't look as favorable for development. I will have the very latest during the 11 PM newscast tonight...see you there!