Bob Henson
@bhensonweather.bsky.social
Meteorologist and journalist. I cover wacky weather, changing climate, and how we live, love, work, get around, and dream.
Weird pockets of intense heat today in the #Boulder CO area. FWIW, my car thermometer spiked from 103F to 108F across just a few blocks! Official high (COOP station, NOAA/NIST site) was 104F. That breaks the city's Aug record from 1936 by 2F and ties the all-time high set in 1954 (6/23 + 7/11).
Urban firestorms like the one that devastated Spokane Saturday have been growing more common because of increased development in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) and climate change. In this post, I document 9 such fires since 2016 in the U.S. yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/08/urba...
Urban firestorm devastates Spokane as dense smoke envelops the Northwest » Yale Climate Connections
Climate change, combined with development in high-risk areas, is making urban wildfires more likely.
yaleclimateconnections.org
A large chunk of northwest Spokane, WA (pop. 289,000) is under Level 3 evacuation orders ("GO NOW") as a wildfire rages. It's being stoked by top-end "extremely critical" weather conditions: www.spc.noaa.gov/products/fir...
Aug 1, 2026 Day 1 Fire Weather Outlook
Severe weather, tornado, thunderstorm, fire weather, storm report, tornado watch, severe thunderstorm watch, mesoscale discussion, convective outlook products from the Storm Prediction Center...
spc.noaa.gov
City of Spokane@spokanecity.org · 4d agoPlease do not drive into the Old Trails Fire evacuation zone. For those in the evacuation zone, please head eastbound. For all evacuation information, visit bit.ly/SRECOfficial...
This is about a worst case scenario that you can imagine for Spokane. Level 3 GO NOW evacs extend all the way to Division. Absolutely heartbreaking. #wawx #wawildfire #OldTrailsFire
@nws.noaa.gov warns of “extremely critical” fire danger Saturday in portions of eastern Oregon and Washington. This is only the third time in the past two decades that the agency has issued this level of warning for Washington state.
Anthony Edwards@edwardsanthonyb.bsky.social · 7d agoEek. Not what the Northwest needs. Elevated to critical fire weather conditions forecast Saturday, Aug. 1 as a dry cold front whips up strong winds east of the Cascades. #WAwx #ORwx #IDwx
Well, it's official...Denver just hit 90° for the 28th time this month, setting a new record for most 90-degree days for any month on record. Old record: 27 days (July 1964 + 2012). #COwx
With a a major El Niño now in full swing, global sea surface temperatures are approaching their previous record, set in March 2024 pulse.climate.copernicus.eu
If the latest FIRIS perimeter for #WoodsideFire is accurate, this would be one of the stranger fire footprints & trajectories I've seen. Under strong NWly winds parallel to coastline, it appears fire has spotted *over oceanic coves* & into downwind forest...twice!! Whoa.
#Dolphin is the planet's second Cat 5 in less than a week – and it's the kind you would expect with a strong El Niño coming on.
Irene Sans@irenesans.bsky.social · 6d agoWhile the Atlantic is calm, Genevieve also loses strength... but in the Western Pacific, Super Typhoon Dolphin travels over very warm waters with very low wind shear. yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/07/hist... (✍️ @bhensonweather.bsky.social & @drjeffmasters.bsky.social )
A long-duration heat wave will hit California in early August, just as the state enters what is historically the peak of its fire season. Rapid drying will make vegetation more flammable than any point so far this year, with near-record levels of energy available for any fire that does break out.
California has dodged a bad wildfire season so far. That could change soon
An impending heat wave, the worst of the year, will dry out vegetation and send California’s fire risk dramatically upward.
sfchronicle.com
Down to the wire in Denver as well as nationally. Denver's July avg thru 7/28 is 78.8F, well ahead of all other months on record except for July 2012 (78.9F). Forecast thru Fri is ever so slightly milder. So most likely July will be Denver's second-hottest month in 155 years of recordkeeping.
Climatologist49@climatologist49.bsky.social · 7d agoIt's going to be a close call, but it now appears more likely than not that July 2026 will be the warmest month on record in the Contiguous U.S. As of today, we are essentially tied with July 1936 and July 2012. 🔥
Fires in France have now burned over 91,000 acres, by far the most of any year since the satellite record started in 2006. Current area burned is about 34x larger than this date in a typical (median) year:
Blink and you might have missed it, but #Genevieve briefly hit Cat 5 strength off Mexico's Pacific coast. It's still a Cat 4 powerhouse set to slowly spin down offshore. Meanwhile, a weakening #Fausto will push big swells and gusty winds toward Hawaii. yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/07/gene...
Genevieve becomes the first Category 5 hurricane of 2026 » Yale Climate Connections
As it feasts on near-record oceanic warmth, Genevieve will stay safely out to sea.
yaleclimateconnections.org
After a low-energy parade of tepid systems in the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific, we have a monster on our hands: Cat 4 Hurricane #Genevieve, packing sustained winds of 155 mph. It's forecast to hit Cat 5 by Mon AM atop near-record-warm waters off the MX coast, then weaken as it stays well offshore.
These are heat indexes, not actual temps. To call that fact “cold comfort” is a colossal understatement.
Alan Gerard@wxmanms1.bsky.social · last wk.Mmmmmm, toasty
Just a casual PDS Severe Thunderstorm Watch in South Dakota for winds up to 100 mph.
Not your average tropical storm, for multiple reasons! More here from @irenesans.bsky.social via @climateconnections.bsky.social
Irene Sans@irenesans.bsky.social · 2w agoBertha has not produced much rain on land, but there are plenty of heat alerts up! (not how it usually goes with tropical systems) Here's why, also a look at the rest of the Atlantic and the Eastern Pacific. yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/07/the-...
To Bertha or not the Bertha.... For now, still TD2. But this take is unlikely to change, even if it officially becomes Bertha on Monday. Once it gets moving, there could be some slight variations. yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/07/trop...
Tropical Depression 2 crawls in the Gulf, trying to organize » Yale Climate Connections
The tropical system is forecast to spread heavy rain and storm surge threats as its wind field expands.
yaleclimateconnections.org
Newborn, slow-moving Tropical Depression 2 in the NE Gulf is predicted to become a tropical storm by Monday, perhaps reaching SE LA by Wed. Similar to TS Arthur, #TD2 could dump heavy rains from the Gulf Coast well to its northeast as the week unfolds. yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/07/td-2...
TD 2 predicted to strengthen near upper Gulf Coast » Yale Climate Connections
Forecast to become Tropical Storm Bertha, this sprawling system could drop pockets of torrential rain over the Gulf Coast and Southeast.
yaleclimateconnections.org
Yesterday’s 24-hour PM 2.5 AQI of 246 at Ashburn, VA and 234 at Springfield, VA were the highest PM 2.5 levels on record for the 21 official EPA monitors in the Washington D.C-Arlington-Alexandria area. Previous record: 222, 6/8/23, at Franconia Park, VA. PM 2.5 data goes back to 1999.
Capital Weather@capitalweather.com · 3w agoThis smoke event in DC is worse than June 2023 in some ways, meaning it's right there with worst on record. DC has now 36+ hours of observed smoke... the longest period on record. Read our full analysis of this event, and what is making it stand out: www.capitalweather.com/this-smoke-o...
The current wildfire smoke event extending from the Great Lakes to the Northeast U.S. represents yet another dead canary in our collective coal mine. We're getting an impressive and exponentially increasing collection of dead canaries! yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/07/dang...
Dangerous and historic wildfire smoke pollution event engulfs the U.S. and Canada » Yale Climate Connections
Most of the fires grew out of control under extreme heat conditions made up to five times more likely by climate change.
yaleclimateconnections.org
Fantastic post on why wildfires in Canada's forests are much different than in the western U.S. "Canada’s area burned has surged, and it has surged in step with warming: hot, dry fire seasons burn far more forest, with area burned rises roughly 80% for each 1°C increase in temperature."
Zeke Hausfather@zekehausfather.com · 3w agoOver at the Climate Brink I take a deep dive into climate and wildfires in Canada, and why complaints about Canadian forest management largely miss the mark as conditions rapidly have become more favorable for megafires: www.theclimatebrink....
VERY UNHEALTHY: DC among cities with worst air on earth this morning. 😖 Air quality as bad or worse than during historic 2023 wildfire event. Could get worse before it gets better. We'll have updates through the day: www.capitalweather.com/wildfire-smo...
While the Pacific is slightly ahead of season as far as TS formation, the Atlantic´s alarm went off... but likely snoozed soon, again.. Also, these areas have more meat to them as far as future development. yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/07/the-...
The Eastern Pacific is a tropical storm factory, and the Atlantic Basin shows signs of life » Yale Climate Connections
The Eastern Pacific is roaring ahead. Now the Atlantic is waking up—and the season's peak could pack a bigger punch closer to land.
yaleclimateconnections.org
I tried to explain some of the key differences this time around from July 4, 2025. Awful stuff for these folks.
The Eyewall@theeyewallwx.bsky.social · 3w agoHill Country is the focal point for horrible flooding just a year and change after last year’s tragedy. We explain the areas hit, compare to 2025, and discuss where things are going. Plus the latest on smoke blanketing the Northeast and Great Lakes. Read below or at theeyewall.com.
High risk of excessive rain > flash flooding for parts of SW TX through 7 AM CDT Friday 7/17: "Areas of slow-moving, heavy rainfall are expected to continue...exacerbating the catastrophic impacts that unfolded across portions of the region overnight." www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/qpf/excessiv...
The Guadalupe River at Centerpoint TX, just downstream from Kerrville, crested this AM at 37.94”— just 2 feet below the level reached in last summer’s catastrophic flood. 1. 39.61 ft on 07-04-2025 (P) 2. 24.27 ft on 10-16-2018 3. 14.83 ft on 05-29-2016 water.noaa.gov/gauges/gctt2
Horrific: *another* flash flood emergency in SW TX. Uvalde/Knippa areas: “Between 10 and 20 inches of rain have fallen over the past 48 to 60 hours with up to 8 inches in the last 2 hours. Flash flooding is already occurring with numerous water rescues and numerous structures impacted by water.”
Alerts from NWS Austin/San Antonio TX (UNOFFICIAL)@ewx.nws-bot.us · 3w agoEWX issues Flash Flood Emergency [flash flood: observed, flash flood damage threat: catastrophic] for Uvalde [TX] till Jul 16, 10:00 AM CDT * At 406 AM CDT, emergency management re... at Thu, 16 Jul 2026 09:06:31 +0000 via IEMbot Additional Details Here.
#Hunt and #Kerrville, #Texas: this is now a Flash Flood Emergency and it's about as bad as it gets. If you are anywhere near Kerrville, Ingram, Hunt, or Waltonia, get to higher ground right now, don't drive through flooded roads. #txwx #TexasFloods @ryanhallyall-xpost.bsky.social
