Weather
Seasonal warmth, rains to ease across the Midwestern Corn Belt
Record-smashing heat will persist across the Northwest for the remainder of the week, boosting temperatures to nearly unimaginable levels for a sustained period.
With drought already in place across much of the Northwest, agricultural impacts on rangeland, pastures, livestock, and rain-fed crops could be severe.
Meanwhile, the interactions between the Southwestern monsoon circulation and the tail of a cold front could lead to locally heavy showers in the Four Corners States.
The rain threat will extend northeastward from the Southwest, with 2- to 4-inch totals possible during the next 5 days from southern sections of the Rockies and Plains into the middle Mississippi Valley, lower Midwest, and Northeast. Heavy showers may also occur in the southern Atlantic region as a low-pressure system moves ashore.
Elsewhere, heat will accompany dry conditions in the Pacific Coast States and northern Rockies, while mostly dry weather will also prevail on the northern Plains.
Looking ahead, the 6- to 10-day outlook calls for the likelihood of above-normal temperatures in southern Florida and across the northwestern half of the U.S., while cooler-than-normal conditions will cover much of the southeastern half of the country.
Meanwhile, most areas of the country should receive near- or above-normal rainfall, but drier-than-normal weather will prevail in southern Florida, as well as the Pacific Northwest, northern Plains, and upper Midwest.
