What a week for weather in Maine! Let’s start with a quick overview of high temperatures recorded around the state over the last few days:

That’s pretty hot, especially considering our average right now is only the mid 70s. This also qualifies as a heat wave for a large portion of the state, which happens when you have had 3 or more days with high temperatures of 90 degrees or higher.

Monday starts off with fog in the morning. It could be particularly dense along the coastline, so travel with caution. The best thing to do is take it slow and remember to use your low beams. High beams get reflected back at you and make it more difficult to see.

High temperatures are limited by fog at the coastline. Most will be near 80, though some spots along the Midcoast that are most favorable to get onshore flow will be in the 70s. Inland, highs range from the low 80s to near 90. The highest temperatures will be recorded the furthest away from the coastline.

A stray shower is possible in the mountains on Monday afternoon.

Fog shows up again Monday night into Tuesday morning. It should burn off fairly quickly Tuesday, so we all have a chance to climb back into the 80s under partly to mostly sunny skies. I think most stay dry on Tuesday, though humidity will still be quite apparent.

Wednesday is when we have the best chance for widespread showers and storms. A cold front will be approaching from the west. Ahead of it, we will watch showers and storms fire.

With enough energy, we could fire off some stronger thunderstorms. More details as we get closer, but I think it’s worth mentioning.

We’ve been pretty dry. Our rain deficit started in May and has continued through the first three weeks of June. The drought monitor below shows that we’re “abnormally dry,” which means that we’re not in a drought yet, but we are setting the stage to get there if we stay this dry. We need the rain so we will take what we can get on Wednesday.

Thursday will be a bit cooler with less humidity. Highs still top out near 80, but the air will be noticeably drier.

The next chance for showers comes on Saturday. Beyond that, the pattern looks generally warm, with pretty good chances of remaining above average. Hello, summer!

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