An intense heat dome is poised to build across much of the central and eastern United States, bringing triple-digit heat index values all the way into Canada as temperatures reach record levels. The National Weather Service is calling for “potentially dangerous and long duration heat.” The heat will first build over the southern United States and Midwest this weekend before swelling over the Ohio Valley and East Coast next week.
Some 82% of Americans will see highs over 90 degrees. Chicago, St. Louis, Nashville, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Washington and New York are among scores of population centers that could see multiple days with highs of at least 95 degrees.
People walk near a sign on Hanover Street in the North End, during a heat wave in July 2022, in Boston. Dangerously high temperatures Wednesday and Thursday threaten much of the Northeast. Boston is forecast to see highs of 95 degrees on both days.
Charles Krupa/Associated Press, file The heat dome is already gripping the Desert Southwest, allowing sunshine to bake the ground and heat the air. Heat advisories and excessive-heat warnings are in effect across southern Arizona and New Mexico, where temperatures of 105 to 113 degrees will be common. On Saturday, the heat dome will shift into the southeastern United States, producing highs from 95 to 100 degrees from Little Rock to Atlanta.
By Sunday, the heat dome will expand northward and eastward, becoming centered first over the Ohio Valley into Monday befor.
