It's the peak of summer, and for us the week that typically has the warmest day of the year.
This is a "statistical" map, which means it has been
massaged in various ways and maybe multiple times. Is it showing averages, median day or just what? I don't know. What it says is
that here on the east coast of Florida, just south of the little bump about 2/3 of the way
up the state (Cape Canaveral) our hottest week is
July 26 to 31. Thousands of square miles along the northwestern states share
the same days with us; the others tend to be in a few days, August 1-5.
I find it interesting that west Texas, southern New Mexico and Arizona are all warmest in June with the majority being June 16-30. Northern Arizona and New Mexico push that out to July 20, and have seen their hottest week. The parts of the country that are warmest in September or late August are all along the Pacific coast. By far, the largest part of the country will have hit their highest temperatures by August 5th - next Saturday. As some sort of average or other statistical massaging.
While it isn't August by the calendar, it's August by the feel of the day.
The first indicator it's peak summer is when the UV Index says 11 on a scale
of 10 and uses the description, "Potentially Fatal." We know that's
aimed at visitors to the area who aren't used to it and don't pay much
attention.
There are many places where folks look forward to summer; it's time to go outside - maybe for the first time in months, enjoy warm, glorious days; garden, bike, picnic; maybe enjoy a book while lounging on the beach. Songs like Nat King Cole's classic "Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer" come to mind.
That's not here. Here, summer is something to be a bit more reserved about. Maybe when you're a teen or in your 20s, you can get away with it. If you live here, you can keep up with your regular life. If you were from a moderate place, not used to our heat and humidity, running or other outdoors activity could conceivably kill you. August marks the Dog Days of Summer, named for when Sirius, the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major (Big Dog) and called The Dog Star starts rising before sunrise. Everything outdoors slows. Fishing slows - sure the fish have to eat, but they become more active after dark. Outdoor range trips are best over before noon. Animals are more sluggish. Ordinarily, it can be nasty here from about mid-July to almost the middle of September. The worst of it is August.
We've had it pretty easy so far this Summer. No days over 100*F, but a few in the high 90's. So far it's been a cool, wet Summer.
ReplyDeleteFrom my recollection of being in Gainesville, FL from 1985 on, our hottest days are always the last weeks of August going into early September. July's hot, yes, but late August is when the Broiler is turned on, along with the Steamer.
ReplyDeleteThe first year I was here, the last week of August was over 100 degrees pert near every day.
Every year afterward, the last weeks of August and the first week of September is the hottest. Unless interrupted by hurricanes, which just add humidity.
I lived "some distance" south and west from you for over 20 years; I now live well north of you where the common complaints are about July and August. I tell them "July and August are always the problem, in Florida July first occurs during the second week of February and August 31 comes the week after Thanksgiving."
ReplyDeleteAs they say, I hear that! It sure can be that way.
DeletePart of working in the ship's machinery spaces was to be very well aware of just how fast a human body can go from heat stress to heat stroke. And just as you said, high temperatures can kill you.
ReplyDeleteLived in FL most of my life and all I can say is, bring it on. High temps are deadly if you decide to work or play too hard, but cold can kill you even if you're 'chillin'. I cannot imagine myself in a cold environment where an automobile breakdown could be deadly in winter (and I don't mean an urban area). The best part of high temps in FL is it chases the Yankees away.
ReplyDeleteHigh temps are deadly if you decide to work or play too hard, but cold can kill you even if you're 'chillin'.
DeleteAbsolutely right.
Hah! It's all about how you engage the weather. You can die locked in a hot car just as fast as in a cold one. You can always put on more clothing and your body heat will keep you warm. But you can't take any more off once you're naked. Our biology is a natural source of heat, but we are lousy at air conditioning because that sweat will go away once dehydration sets in.
DeleteThe saying here is that all the Californian refugees will leave as soon as winter hits. It's mostly true. Some go hiking and turn into Frisco-sicles.
what's your thoughts about this?
ReplyDeletehttps://www.bookwormroom.com/2023/07/30/if-there-is-global-warming-blame-pele-the-volcano-goddess-not-humans/
Along with the active space weather you've commented before?
In the specific sense of Hunga Tonga, I did more on that in yesterday's post, but there's a broader case to be made, too. Volcanoes underwater or under the ice in places like Antarctica and Greenland might be causing things like the decline of ice above them, or contributing to temperatures in ways that just aren't understood.
DeleteBasically, CO2 is a trace gas in the atmosphere, and human emissions are a small portion of a trace. Sitting here without one cup of coffee, yet, I don't remember the numbers to quote. To do what they've proposed would require a strong positive feedback effect that there just doesn't appear to be any evidence for.
Especially, look at this old post for a cross section of the atmosphere being predicted by the warming models and what's really measured. Yeah, it's a 12 year old post, but as far as I know, the models have never stopped predicting it. And they still suck at predicting the effects of clouds.
AZ, NM, west TX all hit their peak in June, because (in a normal year) there's almost no clouds or precipitation April-June, with the rainy season starting in July and running through August. That brings heavy clouds and thunderstorms most afternoons. They only last 15-30 minutes, but break the heat at what would normally be the hottest time of day.
ReplyDeleteI've been to all three of those states and seen the summer "monsoon" in action, but didn't feel qualified to add the explanation.
DeleteJuly 31 and August 1 - expected daily highs here: 78 (F).
ReplyDelete