Wet First Half of September

Hurricane Isaac will affect the northern Gulf coast and unfortunately, it appears that New Orleans will once again bear the brunt of the storm as it did back in 2005.  Although the NWS Hurricane center only strengthens Isaac to a Cat 1, I believe the environment will allow it to achieve Cat 2 prior to landfall.  Here is Isaac as of 5 pm EDT Monday as seen from the electronic visible eye of the satellite:

And the National Hurricane Center's official prediction...

The question that I encountered most today aside from where is Room ____ (you fill in the blank) was will Isaac have an influence on our wx...and I believe the answer to that question is "yes".  This weekend, Labor Day weekend, will be a rather soggy time for most of the Mid-Atlantic and New England as the remnants of Isaac teams up with a sagging cold front from O Canada.  As a result, a fairly wet weekend will result in our region.  In fact, the Climate Prediction Center paints an anomalous precipitation forecast for the next 6-10 days!  Take a look...

When we look at the GFS and its precip print out for once Isaac makes landfall, and then meanders north and east from its landfall, it is easy to see where the storm will likely travel.  The map below shows the total precip over a 2.5 day period ending Labor Day.

Here is the surface map for later Saturday evening...

And as the title indicates, this will not be our only tropical system to impact the eastern part of the USA.  Take a look at the surface map for Sat. September 8.

And take a look as to where it might travel along the eastern seaboard by looking at a graphic showing total rainfall over a 2.5 day period ending the morning of September 9.  If this were to verify, the 2nd week of the high school football season would be in jeopardy due to squally conditions due to the tropical system that seen above.  This is a long shot, but something that the global modeling is sniffing.  In addition, "'Tis the season"!

With the heat and humidity and a few tropical cyclones thrown in for good measure over the years, its no wonder such upbeat music has it roots in the delta country of LA and the low lying regions of the MS.  Enjoy this classic blues song from Muddy Waters...

Enjoy your "Back-to-School" week gang!

Smitty

AA:  Isaac taking aim on New Orleans!  Could be UGLY!  Gas prices likely to increase rapidly by this weekend even though oil prices dropped Monday.  Refineries could be offline for a few days.  We may see some rain from Isaac this weekend and then yet another tropical system 2 weeks hence.  Hope your alarm works tomorrow.