Comedians will have to break out the "It's sooo hot jokes" and the weatherman will have to go to the big book of hot weather descriptions...grilling, blistering, searing, scorching, broiling etc. However you slice it a beast of a heat wave is unfolding for about half of the country and will be boss into next week from the Rockies east. This is a dangerous blast furnace style hot with or without high humidity. Think about it, the body's internal temperaute is 98.6 so when readings reach and exceed that it is medically dangerous heat. Only the lucky ones will get a late day or night thunderstorm this Friday through next Friday.

Fortunately this does not mean the whole summer will be hot. Remember in May when it turned unseasonably hot and everyone was saying "OMG its gonna be killer hot from here to fall" and I said history does not support that. Well, until now June has been cooler than normal! After this heat wave, the rest of the summer will be closer to normal but with both more heat waves and some spells of below-normal temperatures expected through August. So relax, hot spells happen in summer in the south. We won't know what kind of summer it was until September!

Much of the country is melting under the current heat wave sweeping the United States. With temperatures in the 100s in many places, escaping the heat is a necessity. While summer is the time for fun in the sun, high heat comes with the danger of severe sunburn, heat exhaustion and heat stroke. The past couple days over 15 states had triple digit temperatures and today 25 states are under heat advisories. Take care of the pets in this heat too, leave em inside and never in the car.

The heat wave brings with it Chicago's hottest June temperature in 24 years and its first official triple-digit reading in 7 years. Surging humidity will combine with the heat to generate dangerous 105 to 112-degrees heat indices. Only 9 years out of the past 84 had a 100 reading in the Windy City.

2000 record highs have been hit the past couple months in the U.S. hundreds in just the past few days, 251 in one day this week alone with readings as high as 115. That's as hot as Death Valley. Record number of highs in the country since last Sunday stands at 805 as of Thursday June 28th!

Temperatures in Atlanta not seen on these early summer dates in 58-76 years could be on the way. The highest reading ever recorded in Atlanta was 105 in July 1980. Our last bout of triple digits was summer 2007 which peaked at 104 but that was 2 months later August 22nd. Metro Atlanta hit 99 just once last summer and that was not until late August. You have to go back to 2007 for a heat wave akin to this one in Atlanta when we suffered through 9 triple digit days that summer.

The worst of the heat will be Friday to Monday with readings of 100-106 in Georgia and a heat index of 100-110, but it will be no pic nick afterward as readings well in the 90s and humidity to boot are expected through at least the 4th of July. Remember, the forecast high temperature is air temperature in the shade, for direct sunlight add 15 degrees.

In the days ahead their will be nary a cloud in the sky and no chance of rain. A slight chance of a random shower or storm next week as the humidity builds and hot as a firecracker weather continues. No cool weather is expected through at least July 13th.

To protect your health limit outdoor exposure to the early morning hours or after sunset, wear lightweight light-colored clothing, drink plenty of water and avoid alcohol, try to stay out of the sun from 10 in the morning to 5 pm, and never leave children or pets in vehicles...beat the heat, check the back seat.

Georgia Power spokeswoman Lynn Wallace said there are several things customers can do to help limit the costs of keeping cool during the heat wave:

• Set your thermostat at 78 degrees or higher and leave it there. For every degree below that setting, you'll use 3 to 4 percent more electricity.

• Set the thermostat even higher when at work or away from home for long periods of time, but no more than 5 degrees higher.

• Invest in a programmable thermostat that automatically adjusts your home's temperature to your schedule.

• Change or clean your air filter regularly to maximize the unit's cooling potential.

• Check your windows and doors for a tight fit and apply weather stripping or caulking if needed.

• Use fans whenever possible. Ceiling fans can make the air in a room feel 6 degrees cooler and allow you to save energy.

Long-range the month of July in Georgia is expected to have temperatures average normal to a little above-normal while temperatures in August are expected to average near-normal to a little cooler than normal before above-normal temperatures return in September.

Here is what the record book shows for Atlanta:

6/29 101 in 1931 and 1936

6/30 98 in 1890, 1914 and 1936

7/1 and 7/2 99 in 1954.