The Heat Is On (Continued)

Forecast heat index map for Tuesday from the National Weather
Service in South Burlington, Vermont. I see a couple
spot 100 degree heat indexes in places like
St. Albans and Rutland. Yuck!

We're stoking up here in Vermont for yet another heat wave in this long, hot summer.

Heat advisories are already flying for the Champlain Valley, the valleys of western Vermont and in the Connecticut River Valley. These heat advisories, all in effect for tomorrow, also  over the rest of the southern two-thirds of New England, most of New York and New Jersey.

It'll be hot today - highs well into the 80s, but tomorrow is the big day. Most of us will get above 90 degrees, the humidity will be awful and heat indexes will approach 100 degrees.  You know the drill.

Here in Burlington, August is pretty much a shoo-in to become the hottest on record, especially given the weather forecast for the next few days. Currently, the record holder for the hottest August was just two years ago, in 2016, when the mean temperature for the month was 73.7.

So far this month the average temperature in Burlington is 74.6 degrees, so you can see where we stand. There's even a shot this could become the hottest summer overall, despite a cool June. Remember, July was the hottest on record, too.

Interestingly, not counting this year, seven of the 10 hottest Augusts have happened since 2001 (though some of these are tied with hot Augusts decades ago.)

A cold front is going to be stalled north of the border over the next few days and that might - maybe - help with some rain in far northern New York and Vermont.

Heat advisories up for Tuesday areas shaded in orange. People
in areas not shaded are not off the hook. Will be hot there, too

Something nicknamed a "ridge roller," which is a weather disturbance that rides over the northern edges of a strong high pressure system, looks like it might move through southern Quebec tonight, and some showers and storms could extend down just across the International Border.

That cold front will finally, slowly start to make a move toward us Wednesday, and that could spark some more scattered showers and thunderstorms. If everything aligns correctly, some of the storms Wednesday could be strong.

The cold front won't actually cross Vermont until early Thursday, so it will stay hot and humid into Wednesday night. The National Weather Service in South Burlington is mulling weather to issue another heat advisory for Wednesday. It all depends on when the clouds from that cold front arrives.

Thursday and Friday will feel more refreshing with near normal temperatures in the 70s. However, the weather pattern is holding firm for now, so it looks like the first week of September could turn hot again.

There are signs this will all end in due time, not just right away. Currently, the first winter weather advisories of the fall season are up for the mountains of Montana and Wyoming. Between now and Tuesday morning, elevations above 9,000 feet could get four to eight inches of snow.