Just one week ago, on May 29, the high temperature only reached 76 degrees. A week later, June 5, the high nearly reached the century mark in Augusta!

So, why the sudden change? The simple answer is that the weather pattern has changed. Since last weekend, there has been a developing ridge of high pressure at the surface, and aloft over the southeastern states, meaning there is high pressure throughout the various layers of the atmosphere.

High pressure means that air is sinking, which inhibits rain development, allows lots of sunshine, and stagnates the air, creating haze. Along with the high pressure in place, the drought from last year has left our soil drier than usual, so when the weather pattern allows for warmer temperatures, it heats up even more, as there is less moisture near the ground to hold temperatures down.

So, until the weather pattern changes, we will be stuck with extreme heat and a worsening drought situation.

There is some evidence that the second half of the summer may turn out to be a little cooler and wetter than the weather we are experiencing now, but until then, expect the early onset of extreme summer heat to stick around for quite a while.