Trading Extreme Heat for Less Humidity

The heat continues to build across the Coachella Valley, with highs about 10 degrees hotter today through midweek as a strong ridge of high pressure remains in place. We're trading higher humidity for hotter temps--but at least conditions won't feel quite as muggy as the past few days.

Highs peak around 115-117 degrees at the peak of the heat, so about 10 degrees above average for late August. Unfortunately we won't be catching much relief with very warm overnight lows the next few mornings. I expect Thursday and Friday to be the hottest days of the week, with dangerous HeatRisk remaining a concern--not to mention, an Extreme Heat Warning for the area (including the Coachella Valley) through Friday evening.

Thankfully monsoonal moisture has been slowly decreasing, but there’s still a slight chance for afternoon thunderstorms over the mountains through Wednesday, with an isolated storm potentially drifting into the desert. Drier air should continue moving in later this week, helping keep humidity more manageable despite the heat--meaning it likely won't "feel" as hot as temperatures would suggest.

Looking ahead, our ridge finally begins to weaken a bit by this weekend, kicking off a noticeable cooling trend that should bring highs closer to 107-109 degrees by Sunday—much closer to seasonal averages.