Thursday, August 28, 2008

Summer Revival

Though the college students are back in town and football starts this weekend, summer is not done with mid Missouri. High pressure, building in behind the remnants of Fay, has drifted to the Southeast and is sweeping warm, moist air into the Heartland. After almost a week of cool, autumn-like conditions, it feels like summer again and our low this morning climbed from the recent fifties to the upper sixties.

This summer revival won't last long as the next cold front is already dropping across the northern Plains. Thunderstorms are forecast to arrive by this afternoon and, behind them, cooler, drier air will settle in once again. This see-saw of summer and fall will likely continue into early October; by then, the jet stream will drift to the south and summer will be displaced to the Gulf Coast. Like early spring, late summer is caught between seasons and their clash can be stormy; but this is the gateway to autumn and, for many of us, that's enough to sing its praises.