ORLANDO, Fla. – It’s Florida. It’s summer. It’s supposed to be hot.
But the heat over the last few days has been excessive, at times reaching and exceeding 110 degrees when humidity is factored in.
On Tuesday, a temperature of 99 degrees was recorded at Orlando International Airport. That breaks the old record of 98 degrees for this date, last reached in 1987.
While Floridians are used to the heat, afternoon thunderstorms typically help cool things off in the summer. On a widespread scale, that hasn’t been the case lately.
The pattern responsible for the high heat, humidity and lower rain chances appears to be sticking around for at least the next seven days -- and likely longer.
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The pattern is made up of a large area of high pressure in the mid-levels of the atmosphere.
It extends from the southwest Atlantic all the way back to the Plains. These weather features promote sinking air, which dries out and warms up the atmosphere.
This pattern looks to stay locked in through at least Aug. 18, meaning Central Florida could be dealing with the excessive heat, a heat index of 110 or greater, through the middle of August.
Aug. 10-11 could be the hottest period of the current heat wave.
Storm chances won’t be zero, but in most cases will be painfully low during that span.
There are indications that after a short break from the intense heat later this month, the pattern will surge back at the end of August.
Again, we typically see oppressive heat through September in this part of the world, however, flirting with a heat index of 110 or higher for this long isn’t typical.