We warned weeks ago this first real heat wave of summer was coming and it has arrived. But at least it’s a run of the mill type heat wave and nothing too extreme.

The Heat Index or “Feels Like” factor will be close to 100 Wednesday through Sunday, and that’s in the shade.

Think Heat Safety:

We are after all in the “Dog Days of Summer” which run until August 11th.

The normal or average high temperature in Atlanta this time of year is 89F, so we will be a few degrees above-normal for the next 5-15 days.

The chance of a stray afternoon or evening thunderstorm will be with us Wednesday through Friday but most of us will stay dry.

Whenever it is hot AND humid there can be some “pop-up” showers or thunderstorms building in the heat of the day but nothing widespread, and they fade away after dark.

Maximum air temperatures will range 90-95 across the metro area most days.

The chance of isolated to scattered afternoon thunderstorms will go up on the weekend and next week, but nothing all that widespread, just the typical summertime pattern of hit and miss storms with plenty of dry areas and dry hours in between.

MULTI-MODEL ENSEMBLE TEMPERATURE GUIDANCE (note MY forecast will vary):

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Cox Media Group