'Urban heat island' effect keeps Washington areas warm overnight

It could make you feel like you’re on an island all by yourself, the “urban heat island” effect, which makes the sweltering heat from the day seem like it will never cool down overnight.

The effect depends on where you live, especially if you are in Seattle, as the city is still flirting with temperatures in the 90s and points south with spots like Olympia and Chehalis getting to 92-94 degrees.

And temperatures will not go down all that much during the overnights, KIRO 7 meteorologists said.

KIRO 7 meteorologists said, overnight lows will continue to be warm, particularly in urban areas where the “urban heat island” effect is in full swing – higher early-morning low temperatures in highly developed urban areas because of the rapid absorption of solar heat energy during the daytime but the much less effective release of that heat at night compared with open land and even populated areas with more vegetation.

Scroll down to continue reading

More news from KIRO 7

• WATCH: Seattle police release full lip sync video after accepting challenge
• NB I-405 in Bellevue back open after motorcycle officers collide
• Police respond to shooting report in Kent
• Oregon woman discovers mountain lion napping on her couch
• 12-year-old revives her baby brother found in septic tank, East Pierce firefighters say

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE NEWS APP

Western Washingtonians can expect higher overnight lows later in the week and the weekend will continue to make it very difficult to cool off dwellings without air conditioning or a lot of ventilation.

Those coming to Seattle Saturday for the Torchlight Run and Parade will experience another warm day with a high around 90.

Meteorologist Nick Allard said the flow turns weakly offshore again Sunday. This will be the hottest day of this stretch – a real scorcher – with highs in the low to mid-90s around Seattle and points south.

Relief starts to kick in Monday though we’ll still have plenty of 80s.

By Tuesday, highs will be back in the 70s for most (normal for this time of year) with a mix of clouds and sun.  This will likely hold for several days though Seafair Weekend could see 80s return.

Rainfall looks quite unlikely in lowland locations through the next two weeks.

Cox Media Group