North Texas to hit over 100 degrees this weekend for first time this year, forecast says
Fort Worth will get its first taste of what is expected to be a scorcher of a summer, with temperatures over 100 degrees this weekend.
Friday was the coolest day this weekend, with temperatures in the high 90s, said Tom Bradshaw, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Fort Worth office. There was cloud coverage lingering overhead, thanks to an overflow from thunderstorms north of Fort Worth.
Saturday is going to be sunny and hot, with temperatures expected to hit between 100 and 103 degrees, Bradshaw said. The heat index could get into the 105- to 110-degree range in the afternoon, due to a combination of humidity and air temperature.
The National Weather Service’s Fort Worth office issued a heat advisory for the entire region from noon Saturday to 7 p.m. Sunday.
Sunday is more of the same with sunny skies and temperatures expected to hit between 102 and 103 degrees. The heat index could again get into the 105- to 110-degree range in the afternoon hours, Bradshaw said.
Temperatures overnight are not expected to alleviate any of the hot weather this weekend, with night highs in the upper 70s to low 80 degrees.
Monday is expected to be a tad bit better than the weekend with the high only around 100 degrees, Bradshaw said. Past that, next week is looking to be in the high 90s, but still plenty warm.
Hot summers are nothing new for Texans, but it is early in the season to see prolonged high temperatures like this, Bradshaw noted. May was a very warm month for Fort Worth, breaking a 26-year record for the amount of days over 90 degrees.
Summer outlook
1980 and 2011 are two years that set the benchmark for all summer weather in North Texas.
Each year had 60-plus days over 100 degrees in the summer months and the highest temperature was at least 110 degrees.
Bradshaw said it’s too early to compare 2022’s summer to the unprecedented heat of 1980, but this year does share a few parallels with 2011. Such as, the upper-level patterns and how May unfolded, are good comparisons between 2011 and 2022.
2011 was a very hot and dry summer, and all indications are pointing to the same conditions for 2022.
One of the key factors for the warm weather over the last few months relates to La Nina, the cooling weather pattern in the equatorial pacific, Bradshaw said. Whenever the pattern is present it tends to lead to warmer and drier conditions than normal in the winter and spring.
Another large factor is the lack of rainfall in North Texas, leading to relatively dry soil conditions.
“When your soil conditions through the springtime are relatively dry, that tends to lead you into into a hotter summertime pattern, because it’s a little easier for the soil to warm up during the day,” Bradshaw said.
This story was originally published June 10, 2022 at 11:38 AM.
