So here we are again...another toasty afternoon as temperatures are soaring into the 90s as I type this. before the afternoon is done we'll see highs near 95 for some areas and this will continue probably through Thursday. Dewpoints are coming down as we continue to dry out the terrain around these parts. Readings now are int he 60-65 range so the heat index won't get out of control for the next several days...probably in the 95-100 range.
Just continue to use some common sense and drink plenty of fluids (water) or try to stay in a cool place for those who are more sensitive about the heat.

There are no real changes in my forecast thinking since yesterday. Today there will be no storm activity across the N MO area...we're now capped up and the trof/froont that was lurking near the IA border has just about washed out so the chances of getting enough convergence, despite the instability that's out there is low. Actually the cap isn't overly strong today but I still think the vast majority of our viewing area will be dry. The latest satellite loops are looking dry/clear out there.

There is an impressive storm across the western part of the country...actually just offshore. It brought record rainfall to a few cities out west yesterday including San Francisco (1.07"), Oakland (1.45") and Monterey (.83").

There may be some snow across some of the higher elevations above 7500 feet out there...where 3-6" is possible tomorrow. Meanwhile in the SE part of the country there were 30 record highs yesterday, including New Orleans which hit 100 degrees.

Hey how about some snow in Hawaii of all places...yup it can happen on the mountain tops, actually it's not to surprising if the have cold air aloft...and Winter Weather Advisories are in effect for the Big Island Summits till 6PM Local Time.

The folks from NOAA-NCDC have issued a report on the Joplin Tornado...including posting some interesting video showing the tornadic storm in 3D. Take a look.

I've spent a good portion of my weather time this weekend talking about the flooding situation across the upper midwest, associated with all the water flowing down the MO River. I'll post some of the graphics when I get back to work...but it's amazing that today the amount of water passing through Gavin's Pt Dam, which is the last of 15 dams across the upper midwest controlling the MO River, is releasing about 65 BILLION gallons of water per day...however due to all the precipitation and now the melting snow that's entering the river from the Big Sky country...the rate will be going up tremendously over the next 10+ days. By the 14th, assuming that the rainfall is normal up there between now and then the rate will be increased to almost 1 TRILLION gallons per day...which is 1.5 times the amount of ALL the water in the Lake of the Ozarks/day!!! Amazing and no wonder there is great concern about river flooding from St Joseph northwards. Folks in IA are especially vulnerable from this situation. Here is an update on a levee breach in NW MO.

Now look at what happens with the release around the 14th...incredible increases!

Joe