Mare McLaughlin (left), 6, of Dracut, Mass., reacts as her cousin Emily White (right), 5, of Hudson douses her with a cup of water at the North Conway Community Center splash pad on August 4 during their families' visit to the area. (RACHEL SHARPLES PHOTO)
People flock to the beach at the First River Bridge Park along the Saco River in North Conway on a brutally hot August 4. (RACHEL SHARPLES PHOTO)
Mare McLaughlin (left), 6, of Dracut, Mass., reacts as her cousin Emily White (right), 5, of Hudson douses her with a cup of water at the North Conway Community Center splash pad on August 4 during their families' visit to the area. (RACHEL SHARPLES PHOTO)
People flock to the beach at the First River Bridge Park along the Saco River in North Conway on a brutally hot August 4. (RACHEL SHARPLES PHOTO)
This was the word people across the Mount Washington Valley used to describe the weather on Thursday as temperatures soared to the mid-90s and the dew points topped 70 into the oppressive level. While Thursday was expected to be the hottest day of the week, it looks like the three H’s (hazy, hot and humid) should be here through the weekend.
According to Weather Underground, Fryeburg, Maine, recorded a temperature of 96 degrees with a “feels like” temperature of 100 on Thursday afternoon.
North Conway topped 94 degrees with feels like of 99 degrees and a dew point level of 71, placing it in the “oppressive” level on the scale.
The higher the dew point, the more humid the air is. On the dew point scale, 55 or lower is considered pleasant; 56-60, comfortable; 61-65, getting sticky; 66-70, uncomfortable; 71-75, oppressive; and 76 and up, miserable.
“Heat and humidity will make some spots feel near 100 degrees,” the National Weather Service in Gay, Maine, posted on its Facebook page. “Thursday will be a great day to be weather aware!”
The state Department of Environmental Services announced Thursday afternoon, “despite recent precipitation, most of the state is designated as experiencing drought and about 13 percent of the state is in severe drought.”
The heat was on not just here but across the nation in what is quickly turning into the hottest summer on record.
The temperature at Boston Logan International Airport reached 97 degrees on Thursday, setting a new record for the date, according to the National Weather Service in Boston. The old record was 96 degrees, set in 1928.
Manchester and Concord both topped 98 degrees by mid-afternoon on Thursday. Manchester also had a heat index of 101 degrees. Dover, Hampton, Hudson, Nashua and Somersworth also reached 98 degrees by 3 p.m.
“The heat index is a measure of how hot it really feels outside, taking into account humidity along with temperature,” the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration stated on its website. “The measurement is used to indicate when the level of heat is dangerous for the human body while in the shade. When out in the sun, a person could perceive that temperature as being up to 15 degrees Fahrenheit higher."
The southern part of the Granite State is likely to see a heat wave through Monday. A heat wave, according to the National Weather Service, is defined as “three consecutive days of 90-degree or above temperatures.”
AccuWeather is calling for a high temperature of 89 degrees on Friday — “Humid; a thunderstorm in spots in the morning followed by occasional rain and a thunderstorm in the afternoon” — with a 70 percent probability of precipitation.
On Saturday, the AccuWeather forecast is a high of 88 degrees while remaining humid and a 27 percent chance of a stray thunderstorm.
Sunday is forecast to be “mostly sunny, hot and humid; caution advised if doing strenuous activities outside,” with a high temperature of 92 degrees and only a 6 percent chance of a thunderstorm.
Conditions are expected to turn more seasonable next week with showers in the forecast Monday through Wednesday.
According to the National Weather Service, much of the nation has been under a “heat dome.”
A heat dome “occurs when a persistent region of high pressure traps heat over an area,” according to William Gallus, professor of atmospheric science at Iowa State University.
"The heat dome can stretch over several states and linger for days to weeks, leaving the people, crops and animals below to suffer through stagnant, hot air that can feel like an oven," Gallus said in an article in the Conversation. "The heat dome can stretch over several states and linger for days to weeks, leaving the people, crops and animals below to suffer through stagnant, hot air that can feel like an oven.”
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, “heat waves are occurring more often than they used to in major cities across the United States. Their frequency has increased steadily, from an average of two heat waves per year during the 1960s to six per year during the 2010s and 2020s. In recent years, the average heat wave in major U.S. urban areas has been about four days long. This is about a day longer than the average heat wave in the 1960s.”
“About 54.7 million people — 17 percent of the population of the contiguous United States — live in the areas expected to have dangerous levels of heat,” The New York Times reported Thursday.
Comedian Steven Wright posed this weather question: “If you saw a heat wave, would you wave back?”
Remember, the first day of winter (Dec. 21), is just 139 days away.
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