There's going to be a lot of it in the days ahead, so let's talk about the Sun

Space City Weather
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Originally published at: There’s going to be a lot of it in the days ahead, so let’s talk about the Sun – Space City Weather

In brief: In today’s post we look ahead to Houston’s sunny, hot, and largely unchanging forecast. Also, since it’s going to be really sunny outside, we dive a bit deeper into the UV forecast, and why you should protect your skin.

We’ve reached peak sunshine

Sunday marked the summer solstice, the point at which the Sun reaches the highest point in the sky. For Houston this is an altitude of 84 degrees above the horizon (90 degrees is the maximum). The Sun reaches this meridian today at 1:23 pm CT. At this point it does not take long for you to burn because the ultraviolet light from the Sun is very nearly at its maximum point for a sea-level location on Earth.

UV index at Bush IAH this week. Slide to the right to see time stamps on the UV forecast. (Weather Bell)

Here’s what the UV forecast for this week actually looks like. If you slide the image, I’ve added some time stamps on a blown up version of the forecast. Essentially, the way to think of this is, from 10 am to 5 pm you’re getting a decent amount of sunshine. From 11 am to 4 pm you’re susceptible to sunburns fairly quickly. And from noon to 2:30 pm your skin will burn quickly without protection, within half an hour or less for many people.

For the remainder of the summer our days will slowly get shorter, and the Sun at a lower angle. But even two months from now in late August, the Sun still reaches a solar angle of 71 percent in the sky, which translates to “noon” on the graphic above in terms of Sun angle. So “extreme” UV is going to be with us for awhile. Protect yourself accordingly!

Tuesday through Friday

Sunshine will prevail for the rest of the week. We can generally expect highs in the low- to mid-90s in the city of Houston, with slightly cooler conditions closer to the coast, and slightly warmer conditions further inland. Winds will generally be light in the morning, while increasing during the afternoon hours and possibly gusting to about 20 mph. Overnight lows will generally drop into the upper 70s, although Thursday and Friday may get into the mid-70s. But really, this will be a distinction without a difference. Rain chances are essentially zero.

Saturday and Sunday

Does anything change this weekend? Probably not. Oh, maybe there’s a 10 percent chance of showers by Sunday. But really, with high pressure still largely in control our forecast remains more or less the same.

Next week

It is possible, although far from guaranteed, that high pressure will start to relent a little bit at some point next week. I don’t think our temperatures will change much, but this could reintroduce something like a 20 percent chance of showers each afternoon. We shall see.

As I said above, remember your Sun protection!

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So I’ve been out in the Sun a lot more lately becauseof my job and the back of my neck has been burning even with SPF 50 mineral Sunscreen. Just bought a hat with a back flap. Hope it helps, the Sun is brutal.

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For us Sandard time or solar time purists I noted how you have the chart in DST because it allows me to get totally confused when I read the sundial in my garden that says noon and the chart says 1pm. LOL Of all the things the government does… And I’m sure I’ll make “some people” angry by suggesting that when we go back on standard time in November we should stay there forever! :sun_with_face:

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What’s your prediction for highest temperature in 2026? With the sub-tropical jet being so active, I’m going with 99….no triple digits.

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Good question.

This looks to be a temporary ridge,not the ridges in summers past that say, I’ll leave when I feel like it. If we go back to rain o’clock days next week, that’s fair. Going back to your prediction, I think we’ll have a few hundred degree days in late July.

And for your lovers opening up windows on a cool day or cozy overcast day, your ship is coming in a few more months, just hang in there.

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@Buccee I sure hope you’re right!

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I think it’s possible but unlikely that Houston won’t reach 100 this summer. If we get stuck under persistent low pressure areas like we did during the summer of 2021, than maybe Houston won’t hit 100 this summer. But that is a pretty rare outcome these days.

The increasing urban sprawl combined with the effects of a warming world are making one or more triple digit days damn near a guarantee in Houston every summer now. Fortunately, I don’t expect any insane numbers like we saw in the 2023 summer, but you never know. All it takes is one strong high pressure system to press down the right way to cause serious spikes in afternoon temperatures, especially if we get compresional heating from nearby cool fronts.

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I vote we stay on this time because I would like at least some sun time at home during the week through the winter months.

Afternoon sun >> Morning sun

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While I’m not a purist, I do think it is time to pick one or the other. I can deal with either as long as I don’t have to reset clock on my non smart devices twice a year :joy:

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