Bob Peters Forecast

Tuesday was the third consecutive day for triple-digit temperatures in Tyler, but there may be some minimal relief over the next few days. Tyler’s temperature reached 101 at 4:42 p.m., after highs of 102 on Sunday and Monday.

Temperatures around the region were a couple of degrees lower on Tuesday, running from the middle 90s to near 100.

Temperatures should top out in the middle to high 90s on Wednesday and Thursday, and there might even be a couple of showers.

The upper air high pressure ridge, primarily responsible for the hot temperatures, has begun to weaken slightly. In addition, winds were somewhat stronger on Tuesday, and relative humidities were up to 15 percent higher. That held down temperatures, but the heat index values were about where they had been on Sunday and Monday afternoons because of the higher relative humidities.

A low pressure area, the remnant of Hurricane Dolly, was over Northwest Okla-homa Tuesday afternoon. It generated widespread showers and thunderstorms over Northwest Texas and Western Oklahoma Monday night and Tuesday morning, with Amarillo receiving more than three inches of rain. This low pressure area will move a bit closer to East Texas Wednesday and Thursday around the northern fringe of the upper air high.

, and perhaps trigger mainly afternoon showers and thunderstorms.

Tuesday’s analysis suggested coverage would run under 25 percent, and amounts one-tenth of an inch at those locations which receive any rainfall. Low-level moisture, though it has increased, is still lacking.

With whatever showers develop over East Texas likely to be high-based, much of the rain which forms will likely evaporate before reaching the ground. This is called virga. The upper air high will return to the region this weekend, again warming temperatures and further decreasing the already-low rain chances.