Increased heat and monsoon moisture

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) – Happy Friday Eve, Utah! Thursday will bring some changes to our weather as moisture starts to surge back into the Beehive State!

This is due to a high pressure shifting to the southeast, allowing for more of a southwesterly flow. The moisture will make it first to southern Utah where we’ll see scattered showers and storms from the afternoon into the evening with daytime highs very similar to what we had yesterday. Meanwhile, the moisture will take a little longer to get up north so most of the day in northern Utah will be spent with mostly sunny to partly cloudy skies and higher heat from the southerly wind.

Most will see daytime highs roughly five degrees above normal as Salt Lake flirts with the century mark. If we hit 100 in Salt Lake City, it will be the 22nd time seeing 100°+ heat this year which would break the all-time annual record. By the second half of the day, clouds will increase in northern Utah and we’ll start to introduce the chance for storms from late in the afternoon into Thursday night.

Friday and Saturday look to be active days across the state with the combination of the monsoon moisture and pieces of energy from low pressure to our west. This will result in scattered showers and thunderstorms statewide while the best chance looks to be over central and northern Utah between Friday and Saturday. Friday could also see times of heavy rain as the entire state is included in at least a marginal risk for excessive rainfall that could lead to flash flooding while in northeast Nevada through northern Utah it goes to a slight risk.

As we go through Friday and Saturday, be sure to stay weather aware, especially for any outdoor plans! While it won’t rain non-stop it will likely come in waves between Friday and Saturday and there is a chance that some in Utah will go without seeing storms. With more moisture present will come less heat as daytime highs will dial back by a few degrees down south and 5-10 degrees up north. 

By late Saturday into early Sunday, a more northwesterly flow will take hold resulting in a dip of moisture for northern Utah. This will result in Sunday being drier with a seasonal to end the weekend while isolated showers and storms remain possible in the southern two-thirds of the state. Moisture is likely to make a comeback at some point between the beginning and middle of next week, but we’ll keep an eye on how that evolves in the coming days.  

The takeaway? A toasty Thursday on the way as monsoon moisture begins to filter back in.

Always stay one step ahead of the weather with Utah’s Most Accurate Forecast on-air and online! We are There4You!