Weather

Cooler, drier air settles into much of the Heartland; heat, humidity & storms shift south

Across the Corn Belt, a cold front crossing the Ohio Valley is generating showers and thunderstorms.  However, mild, dry air has overspread most of the Corn Belt, resulting in nearly ideal conditions for corn and soybean development.  Scattered Midwestern locations are still contending with the aftermath of recent severe thunderstorms, particularly those which produced damaging winds on July 15 from central Iowa into northern Indiana.

On the Plains, a cold front continues to edge southward, with lingering, pre-frontal heat confined to Texas.  Showers and thunderstorms accompany the surge of cooler air, with mostly positive impacts for rangeland, pastures, and summer crops across the southern Plains.  Meanwhile, the return of hot weather across the northern High Plains favors winter wheat maturation and harvesting, as well as the rapid development of spring-sown small grains.

In the South, hot, humid weather continues in the Gulf and Atlantic Coast States, in advance of an approaching cold front.  The front is also fueling an increasing number of showers and thunderstorms, which are benefiting pastures and most summer crops.  However, some Southeastern corn has lost yield potential due to this summer’s heat and dryness.  On July 14, more than one-half of the corn was rated in very poor to poor condition in North Carolina (73%), South Carolina (65%), and Virginia (54%). 

In the West, a mid-summer hot spell persists, although temperatures have slightly retreated from record-shattering levels.  Still, Wednesday’s high temperatures will top 100°F as far north as eastern Washington.  Northwestern heat is hastening the maturation of spring-sown small grains and promoting winter wheat harvesting.  Elsewhere, dry thunderstorms remain a threat to spark new wildfire activity, especially in parts of Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.