Where’s the Rain?

This is the wet season in central Florida.  Although, you wouldn’t know it based on the persistent heat and dry conditions.  July is the hottest month of the year.  It is also the second wettest with an average of 7.15 inches of rain. Currently, Orlando and Melbourne are running a rainfall deficit of over 3 inches, while Daytona Beach is a little over 2 inches behind for July.  This  summer has been drier than normal. 

Orlando has only received 5.85 inches of rain.

This time of year we can usually count on deep tropical moisture to provide the region with good heavy downpours. Bonnie, however was very little help.  In fact, since Bonnie passed well to our south we only managed to squeeze out less than an inch of rain from  it.

We can thank high pressure for suppressing the rain. It has been anchored over the southeast for much of the summer.  This week is no different.  A ridge of high pressure will remain the dominant feature in our weather limiting the chance of rain to only 20-30% for the next few days.

Later this week the high will move out and  a front will start dropping south. This will allow our rain chances to increase some by the weekend. In the meantime, you will still need to water your lawns and gardens but make sure you follow watering restrictions for your area.

The End Of Bonnie

Bonnie never could regain any strength after moving through Florida.  The satellite picture from Saturday afternoon shows just how weak she became.  Notice, you can’t see much of any thunderstorm activity despite still seeing her center of circulation.

Bonnie's Satellite & Radar View

This came as great news regarding the oil disaster.  Obviously the work has been delayed, but some of the crews working the disaster quickly returned to work Saturday.  Here are some of the wind and wave height readings Saturday afternoon from a couple of buoys very near the site of the oil well.  Notice how weak the wind is and that has kept the waves from building too high.

Bonnie's Wind at Buoys

Bonnie's Waves at Buoys

What’s left of Bonnie (her weak circulation) will move into Louisiana overnight.

Right now we are tracking a few tropical waves, but none appear to show any signs of development in the next 48hours.

Have a wonderful weekend.  -Matt