As heat wave travels across the U.S., how hot will Ohio's summer be? See NWS forecast
It's going to be hot today, and, for the next few days at least, keep getting hotter.
Early next week, temperatures could climb up to 96 degrees. Coupled with an increase in humidity, it's set to be a real scorcher.
This wave will be caused by an area of high pressure stretching from the mid-Atlantic to the Ohio Valley, bringing with it above normal temperatures and humidity, National Weather Service in Wilmington meteorologist Scott Hickman said.
But is this heat wave an ominous sign of a sweltering summer?
There's a 40-50% chance June, July and August will be hotter than normal, according to NWS' Climate Prediction Center.
On a worldwide scale, last month was the warmest May on record, making it the twelfth consecutive month where global average temperatures hit a new high, according to the European Union's Earth monitoring program, Copernicus.
Every month this year has seen above average temperatures, according to the State Climate Office of Ohio's monthly climate summaries. February was especially hot, with average temperatures ranging from 6-10 degrees above average.
The trend has been reflected in Ohio, although not always as consistently, Hickman said.
"I think our May was above normal. I'm not so sure about April, but like I said, you could still have different anomalies over smaller areas compared to the whole globe. But definitely it's been a warm 12 months," he said.
Hickman said it's not unusual for a wave to sweep through this time of the year.
"I guess we'll just have to see how much humidity we mix in with those hotter temperatures to see what kind of heat indices we end up getting, whether it forces excessive heat watches or warnings, which are more critical than just advisories," he said.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio weather forecast: NWS predicts a hotter-than-normal summer
