Weather

Heat, oppressive humidity covers the Heartland

Across the Corn Belt, a heat wave is peaking, with Friday’s high temperatures expected to range from 90 to 100° across all but northern corn and soybean production areas. High humidity levels accompany the hot weather, placing additional stress on livestock and poorly rooted crops. Elsewhere, a few showers and locally severe thunderstorms continue to traverse the northern Corn Belt.

On the Plains, extreme heat and high humidity levels persist from Nebraska southward. The heat is maintaining stress on summer crops, such as corn and soybeans, which have begun to enter reproduction. Meanwhile, cool, mostly dry weather prevails across Montana and North Dakota.

In the South, hot, humid weather prevails. Isolated showers are confined to areas east of the Mississippi River, where a few pockets of drought are adversely affecting some pastures and summer crops.

In the West, cool weather in California and the Northwest contrasts with an ongoing Southwestern heat wave. Dry weather region-wide favors fieldwork, including initial Northwestern winter wheat harvest efforts.