Weather Forecast
KCRG TV9 First Alert Forecast For Dubuque and the Tri-States
KCRG TV9 FIRST ALERT FORECAST FOR SATURDAY, JULY 21, 2018
TODAY: PARTLY CLOUDY. BREEZY AT TIMES. WIND: NW 10-20. HIGH 77
TONIGHT: MOSTLY CLEAR. WIND: NW 5-15. LOW 63
TOMORROW: PARTLY CLOUDY. HIGH 82
EXTENDED OUTLOOK MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY:
DRY AND MILD. PARTLY TO MOSTLY SUNNY SKIES. HIGHS IN THE MID 80s LOWS IN THE MID-LOW 60s
MISSISSIPPI RIVER STAGE AT DUBUQUE: 13.2-FEET AND FALLING
KCRG Weather Blog
A Classic Tornado Signature
What radar detected yesterday afternoon around Marshalltown was one that nobody ever wants to see on their screen – a debris ball signature. Normally when we cover severe weather, particularly tornado events, we look at a product called velocity to detect rotation within storms. Occasionally, during a violent tornado, even basic radar picks it up. Notice how the colors go back to red again over the city of Marshalltown. That’s not rain…that’s tornado debris being lofted into the sky and detected by radar. A debris ball usually confirms a large, damaging tornado.
Beyond the Weather: RAGBRAI views
After showers end on Friday, we are in for some very pleasant July weather for at least a week. Starting on Saturday night, continuing through Friday of next week, many will be in campgrounds as RAGBRAI is underway. After you are finished with your ride and are relaxing in the evening, take some time to enjoy these views that go beyond the weather. Using the moon as our target, we can find planets and stars. Sunday night, after you locate the moon at dusk, look directly below it. The bright star you see is Antares, the heart of the constellation Scorpius. As the week progresses, keep an eye on the moon in the evening sky. On Tuesday and Wednesday night, the planet Saturn can be found near the moon. This is the closest the two objects will appear in the sky this month. With the ride winding down on Thursday and Friday, before you take off early in the morning, look to your southern sky. Just below the Great Square of Pegasus, the Delta Aquariid meteor shower nears its peak. The meteors will be dim so they may be hard to spot. Happy stargazing!
90-degree heat has been backwards this year
May was an unusually warm month, logging a few highs in the 90s. June’s tally of 90s was more than double what’s normal. July, however, will come up near or even a little short of the average number of days of highs hitting 90. In Cedar Rapids, May had four days in the 90s, June had eight, and July will end up with four. While 2017 and 2016 also had fewer 90s in July than in June, it’s actually a bit unusual! Over the past 50 years, June has had more 90s than July 12 times. That’s a little less than one out of every four years. It’s quite rare for May to have at least as many as July – that’s happened just three other times in the past half-century. Dubuque will come away with two days in the 90s in July after having four in June and two in May. Only eight of the past 50 years have had more 90s in June than in July. Dubuque has had as many 90s in May as in July just one other time in the past 50 years. Iowa City’s records at the airport don’t go back as far; the water treatment plant had four 90s in May, eight in June, and seven this month. There, June has had more 90s than July on ten occasions. While it didn’t happen this year, May has matched July’s number of 90s once in the past 50 years. Waterloo picked up four 90s in May, seven in June, and will end up with three for July. Since 1969, June has had more than July in 11 years, which is similar to Cedar Rapids. Comparing May and July, that’s happened in two other years.
A parade of cold fronts is coming
This is a very favorable weather pattern for anything planned outdoors. It won’t be stiflingly hot for the county fairs, nor will it be too cool for swimming, boating or grilling. The first in a series of cold fronts moved across the area Monday afternoon. This pocket of cooler air continues to push down to the southeast. The second cold front will move across our area sometime on Friday into Friday night. The third front looks to move through around Monday or Tuesday of next week. What this means for us is a continuation of slightly below normal temperatures for the next one to two weeks. This also tends to be a drier pattern overall with little risk of heavy rain.
Upcoming weather pattern keeps the heat away
Less humid air poured in on Monday, and the mugginess will be tolerable for most of the next several days. Temperatures will also be hanging out close to the July normal of the lower to middle 80s, and there are no signs of big heat moving into our part of Iowa anytime soon. The reason for this is that the jet stream will be dipping southward across the eastern United States. This will allow occasional systems from Canada to slide past, reinforcing the comfortable air. It also prevents the big heat from shoving into Iowa. This pattern looks like it will persist not just this week but possibly beyond. In fact, the Climate Prediction Center is forecasting odds that favor temperatures that are cooler than normal this weekend through the middle of next week.