[BNAWX] Special Weather Statement

[EMWIN Server]

WWUS84 KOHX 240758
SPSOHX

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN
258 AM CDT FRI AUG 24 2007

TNZ005>011-022>034-056>066-075-077>080-093>095-241700-
BEDFORD-BENTON-CANNON-CHEATHAM-CLAY-COFFEE-CUMBERLAND-DAVIDSON-
DEKALB-DICKSON-FENTRESS-GILES-GRUNDY-HICKMAN-HOUSTON-HUMPHREYS-
JACKSON-LAWRENCE-LEWIS-MACON-MARSHALL-MAURY-MONTGOMERY-OVERTON-PERRY-
PICKETT-PUTNAM-ROBERTSON-RUTHERFORD-SMITH-STEWART-SUMNER-TROUSDALE-
VAN BUREN-WARREN-WAYNE-WHITE-WILLIAMSON-WILSON-
258 AM CDT FRI AUG 24 2007

...HEAT ADVISORY UNTIL 7 PM TODAY FOR MIDDLE TENNESSEE EXCEPT
PLATEAU...

YESTERDAYS HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 103 DEGREES SET ANOTHER DAILY
HIGH RECORD IN NASHVILLE. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 100 DEGREES BACK
IN 1983. NASHVILLE ALSO BROKE THE RECORD FOR THE HIGHEST DAILY
MINIMUM TEMPERATURE FOR AUGUST 23RD WITH 78 DEGREES. THE PREVIOUS
RECORD WAS 75 DEGREES IN 1989.

CROSSVILLE BROKE THE RECORD HIGH FOR AUGUST 23RD WITH 98 DEGREES.
THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 96 SET IN 1968. CLARKSVILLE HIT 103 DEGREES
YESTERDAY AFTERNOON.

NASHVILLE WILL LIKELY BREAK ANOTHER RECORD TODAY WITH A FORECAST
HIGH OF 102 DEGREES. THE RECORD HIGH FOR AUGUST 24TH IS 100
DEGREES SET BACK IN 1943.

THE RECORD HIGH FOR AUGUST 24TH AT THE CLARKSVILLE SEWAGE PLANT
IS 104 DEGREES...COLUMBIA 99 DEGREES...LEBANON 101 DEGREES...
MCMINNVILLE 98 DEGREES...MURFREESBORO 101 DEGREES. NEW RECORDS
COULD BE SET AGAIN TODAY IN A FEW AREAS.

NASHVILLE HAS BROKEN FOUR DAILY HIGH TEMPERATURE RECORDS THIS
MONTH...AND EITHER BROKEN OR TIED...SEVEN...HIGHEST DAILY MINIMUM
TEMPERATURE RECORDS.

YESTERDAY MARKED THE 14TH DAY OF 100 DEGREES OR ABOVE IN NASHVILLE
THIS MONTH...THIS SUMMER AND THIS YEAR SO FAR. THIS IS TWICE
AS MANY DAYS AS PREVIOUSLY RECORDED IN THE MONTH OF AUGUST. THE
PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 7 DAYS SET BACK IN 1954. IT IS ALSO THE MOST EVER
RECORDED IN ANY MONTH. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 11 DAYS BACK IN JUNE
1952. AS FOR THE SUMMER...BACK IN 1954...NASHVILLE HAD 20 DAYS OF
TRIPLE DIGIT TEMPERATURES...AND IN 1952...WE HAD 19.

CURRENTLY...AUGUST 2007 IN NASHVILLE IS AVERAGING 9.4 DEGREES
ABOVE NORMAL. THIS IS NEARLY 5 DEGREES HOTTER THAN THE HOTTEST AUGUST
ON RECORD...WHICH WAS IN 1995. AUGUST 2007 COULD ALSO END UP BEING
THE HOTTEST...OF ANY MONTH SINCE RECORD KEEPING BEGAN IN NASHVILLE...
NEARLY 137 YEARS AGO.

THE DAILY HIGH TEMPERATURE IN NASHVILLE THIS MONTH IS AVERAGING
100 DEGREES THROUGH AUGUST 23RD. NORMAL HIGH IS 87 DEGREES.

THERE HAVE BEEN 22 CONSECUTIVE DAYS OF 95 DEGREES AND ABOVE IN
NASHVILLE. THIS IS UNPRECEDENTED IN THE WEATHER RECORDS AT
NASHVILLE. THE OLD RECORD WAS 19 DAYS BACK IN JUNE 1952. THIS STREAK
WILL LIKELY CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT FIVE OR SIX DAYS.

YESTERDAY WAS THE 29TH CONSECUTIVE DAY OF 90 DEGREES AND ABOVE IN
NASHVILLE. A STRING THAT BEGAN BACK ON JULY 26TH. THIS IS THE MOST
SINCE JUNE 1954...AND THE 3RD MOST ON RECORD. THE MOST EVER RECORDED
IS 31 DAYS BACK IN JUNE OF 1952 AND AGAIN IN JUNE OF 1954. WE SHOULD
BREAK THIS STRING.

THE 106 DEGREES ON AUGUST 16TH NOT ONLY BROKE THE RECORD HIGH
TEMPERATURE FOR THAT DATE...BUT ALSO BROKE THE ALL TIME RECORD HIGH
FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST...WHICH HAD BEEN 105 DEGREES SET BACK IN
AUGUST 1930. THIS ALSO WAS THE HOTTEST TEMPERATURE IN NASHVILLE IN
THE LAST 55 YEARS...ONLY SURPASSED BY THE ALL TIME RECORD HEAT OF
107 DEGREES BACK ON JULY 27TH AND 28TH 1952.

WE HAVE HAD 29 DAYS WITH ONLY 0.05 INCHES OF RAIN IN NASHVILLE.
BACK IN 1925...NASHVILLE WENT 31 DAYS WITH ONLY 0.05 INCHES OF
RAIN. THAT STRETCH STARTED ON MAY 18TH AND ENDED ON JUNE 17TH.

THE DRIEST AUGUST ON RECORD...WAS BACK IN 1929 WHEN ONLY 0.51
INCHES FELL. OTHER DRY AUGUSTS INCLUDE...1936...1968 AND 1987.

SINCE THE FIRST OF JUNE...NASHVILLE HAS RECORDED ONLY 3.89 INCHES
OF RAINFALL. THE DRIEST JUNE THROUGH AUGUST ON RECORD...WAS IN
1954...WHEN 4.74 INCHES OF RAIN FELL. OTHER YEARS WITH A DRY JUNE
THROUGH AUGUST INCLUDE...1925...1948 AND 1943. RAINFALL SINCE JANUARY
1ST HAS TOTALED 17.36 INCHES...WHICH IS 14.41 INCHES BELOW NORMAL.

COMPUTER MODELS RETROGRADE THE STRONG UPPER LEVEL HIGH PRESSURE
SYSTEM THIS WEEKEND...ALLOWING A TROUGH TO DEVELOP OVER THE GREAT
LAKES REGION. THIS TROUGH WILL ALLOW FOR A WEAK COOL FRONT TO GET
CLOSE ENOUGH ON SATURDAY TO BRING AT LEAST A CHANCE FOR ISOLATED
THUNDERSTORMS...MAINLY NORTH OF INTERSTATE 40 ON SATURDAY...AND
SATURDAY NIGHT. THE TROUGH WILL BE SHORT LIVED...AS THE STRONG UPPER
LEVEL RIDGE BUILDS BACK INTO OUR REGION...ON SUNDAY. UNFORTUNATELY...
THERE IS NO SIGNIFICANT RAIN IN SIGHT FOR MIDDLE TENNESSEE...THROUGH
NEXT WEEK.

WE ARE CURRENTLY CLASSIFIED AS HAVING AN EXTREME TO EXCEPTIONAL
DROUGHT CONDITIONS ACROSS MIDDLE TENNESSEE.

DROUGHTS AND HEAT WAVES ARE PART OF THE NATURAL VARIABILITY OF OUR
WEATHER AND CLIMATE. IN OUR REGION...SUMMER DROUGHTS AND HEAT WAVES
ARE A RESULT OF A STRONG UPPER LEVEL HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM THAT
EXTENDS TO GREAT HEIGHTS IN THE ATMOSPHERE...AND REMAINS ENTRENCHED
OVER OUR REGION FOR SEVERAL WEEKS. THIS WAS THE CASE IN THE 1930S...
EARLY TO MID 1950S...1980...1983...AND THE MID TO LATE 1980S...AND
NOW IN 2007. ONCE THIS PATTERN BECOMES ESTABLISHED IT OFTEN PERSIST
THE WHOLE SEASON. A RING OF FIRE OFTEN DEVELOPS ON THE PERIPHERY OF
THE UPPER LEVEL HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM. ONCE A DROUGHT GETS UNDERWAY...
IT HAS AN INSIDIOUS WAY OF FEEDING UPON ITSELF. MOISTURE THAT IS
NORMALLY IN THE SOIL TENDS TO COOL THE LOWER PART OF THE
ATMOSPHERE...THROUGH EVAPORATION OF WATER. AS THE SOIL DRIES...THIS
PROCESS BECOMES WEAKER. DESSICATED SOIL RERADIATES THE INCOMING
SUNLIGHT INTO THE LOWER ATMOSPHERE...INTENSIFYING THE HEAT AND
LEADING TO EVEN DRIER CONDITIONS.

DURING THE HEAT WAVE...SOME PRECAUTIONS SHOULD BE KEPT IN MIND. STAY
INSIDE TO THE EXTENT POSSIBLE...PREFERABLY IN AN AIR CONDITIONED
SPACE. IF YOU MUST BE OUTSIDE...DRINK FLUIDS FREQUENTLY... WEAR
LIGHT COLORED CLOTHING WITH A HAT...AND STAY IN THE SHADE AS MUCH
AS POSSIBLE.

$$
BOBBY BOYD



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