Saturday, June 16, 2012

bone-dry heat... (pm.16.jun.12)>

Our sky is a mix of sunshine, haze and a few random clouds (mainly over the mountains) this evening.  Temperatures have been climbing incrementally for the past five days... up to a high of 91.0F (32.8C) this afternoon in the upper part of McLeod Ganj.  That's the warmest since the 1st day of June, and tied for the third-warmest of this summer season.  It's been very close to 100F (37C) just down the hill in Dharamsala.

Our weather pattern remains rather unusual for the middle of June.  The leading edge of the monsoon is still hung up well to our south, considerably behind schedule -- while a sprawling area of high pressure aloft is keeping a dry west-northwesterly flow in play across much of northern India.  Temperatures are running several degrees above normal from parts of central Pakistan through northwest and northcentral India.  The latest raw data and computer model output indicates very little change in this overall pattern for the next several days.

There are indications that a bit of pre-monsoon moisture may attempt to surge northward by late Monday or Tuesday, but at this point, I don't think it will be enough to crash this generally dry and hot pattern.  By this time last year we were already getting regular moderate to heavy pre-monsoon downpours... what a difference a year makes!

SATURDAY NIGHT:
clear to partly cloudy skies.  uncomfortably warm.
low: 25C (77F)

SUNDAY:
hazy sunshine and a few mainly PM clouds.  still hot.
high: 33C (91F)

SUNDAY NIGHT:
clear to partly cloudy.  very warm.
low: 25C (77F)

MONDAY:
hazy sun, along with a few clouds.  unseasonably warm.
high: 32C (90F)

TUESDAY:
a mix of sun and some clouds.  a bit more humid, with a risk of a thundershower.
morning low: 26C (78F)
daytime high: 32C (89F)

WEDNESDAY:
sunny to partly cloudy... very warm.
morning low: 24C (76F)
daytime high: 31C (88F)

THURSDAY:
summer warmth continues... hazy sun and a few clouds.
morning low: 25C (77F)
daytime high: 32C (89F)