Austin's Independence Day celebrations may have to contend with a bit of nature's fireworks, as showers and thunderstorms are likely before 1 p.m. today, with a cloudy sky and a high near 87 degrees according to the National Weather Service forecast. The south wind will hum at 5 to 10 mph, though gusts could reach as high as 20 mph. While the chance of precipitation sits at 60%, it's said that new rainfall amounts will range between a tenth and a quarter of an inch, though thunderstorms may deliver higher totals.
As night falls on the city, the likelihood of rain diminishes somewhat, leaving us with a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms before 1 a.m., then a slight chance of showers sandwiched between 1 a.m. and 4 a.m., followed by a return of that slight chance for storms after 4 a.m., during the nighttime celebrations might still be dampened by lingering drizzles, the heat will simmer down to a more comfortable low around 76 degrees. The south southeast wind will continue to whisper at around 5 mph throughout the night.
Looking ahead to the weekend, Saturday holds a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, primarily post 1 p.m., and it's not just the humidity that will rise—the mercury is expected to creep up as well, reaching a high near 90 despite the mostly cloudy coverage, on Sunday we're promised a bit of reprieve from the clouds with partly sunny skies and temperatures flirting with the mid-90s, indicating a typical sweltering summer day in Central Texas.
The forecast continues to heat up through the next week, Monday's skies are projected to be mostly sunny with temperatures soaring near 97 degrees, and the calm winds will take on the southern direction at about 5 mph in the afternoon, as the city transitions from pyrotechnics to everyday hustle, that heat wave seems intent on extending its stay, Tuesday and Wednesday committing to sunny conditions that push the thermometer close to the century mark, and by Thursday Austin could be basking in a scorching 101 degrees high.
