Staff Writer, DB Holmes
Weather / Air Quality
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Phoenix's first 100 degree day is coming quickly as the cooler air mass has left the Valley of the Sun. Breezy conditions will persist throughout the week. This weekend looks to be a scorcher.
Forecast Discussion: The wind event Saturday brought everything we expected - wind, cold air, dust, and some rain. Every PM10 monitor across the Valley registered Moderate levels. Buckeye nearly exceeded the standard, perhaps due to some recently tilled fields nearby? Rain totals were light as expected. Sky Harbor officially received just a Trace (less than 0.01 inches) of rain. Most measurable amounts fell in the upslope locations north, northeast and east of the Valley. The system has moved east and the flow has turned out of the northwest. There still remains some lingering dust in the Valley. The remnants will disperse over the course of the next several days with the heating of the day and natural drainage patterns to the west. Concentrations should return to the Good range by Monday. Ozone levels were Good on Saturday. Expect levels to remain mostly in the upper part of the Good range through much of the week under a northwest flow. Temperatures will rebound from a high of only 76°F on Saturday to 90°F by Tuesday and Wednesday, pushing into the middle 90s by Friday.
Source: AIRNow, Weather Channel
