We are seeing more blue in the sky today, but Saharan haze arrives early next week

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- After a couple of hazy days in Houston, the sky has turned bluer today and should stay that way for most of the weekend. Starting late Sunday, a thick cloud of Saharan dust blows in, but we should get some haze relief early in July with the return of daily downpours.

The Gulf breeze is a touch stronger today with winds gusting over 25 mph at times. This is pushing in enough moisture for a 10% chance of passing shower. You'll notice the sky looks more blue than gray with the wildfire smoke and Saharan haze gone for now. High temperatures are again climbing up toward the 93 degree mark with the peak heat index in the low 100s. Expect a partly cloudy sky as the heat ridge continues to squash the clouds overhead.

How is the weekend shaping up?

We'll get a slightly stronger southerly breeze over the weekend, keeping lows near 80 and highs in the mid 90s. Enough moisture is back on Sunday to generate a 20% chance of isolated showers. While the sky may look more blue on Saturday, a Saharan haze will begin blowing in late Sunday.

What is the early weather outlook for July 4th?

It's looking like a fairly typical summer day witih lows in the mid 70s, a high in the low 90s, and a 30% chance of a shower or storm popping up, mainly in the afternoon. In this type of pattern where the storm chance is driven by the heat of the day, we are usually rain-free for the evening, so we expect firework shows will be a go!

What are you tracking in the tropics?

There is a large plume of thick Saharan dust entering the Caribbean that should eventually reach us here in Southeast Texas early next week. Visit our Tropical Update page for a more in-depth tropical weather discussion and forecast.

13 ALERT RADAR MAPS:
Southeast Texas
Houston
Harris County
Galveston County
Montgomery/Walker/San Jacinto/Polk/Grimes Counties
Fort Bend/Wharton/Colorado Counties
Brazoria/Matagorda Counties

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