August 31st marks the first day since April 12th with a 7 am sunrise.  The sunset will be 8:10 pm.

This will give us 13 hours and 10 minutes of daylight.  The first day of summer had 15 hours and 12 minutes of daylight.

Friday saw the coolest morning lows since early July.  The next few nights will see modest increases in the overnight lows.  Humidity levels should creep upwards Tuesday into Wednesday, which will then keep lows in the mid/upper 60s.

1. Louisville, Ky.
Days above normal: 73

2. Memphis, Tenn.
Days above normal: 72

3. Atlanta, Ga.
Days above normal: 69

4. Raleigh, N.C.
Days above normal: 68

5. New Orleans, La.
Days above normal: 68

Toledo would also make the cut for the top 20 hottest cities with 64 days of above average temperatures.

June: 26
July: 24
August: 14*

Toledo was in good company in experiencing the heat across the Great Lakes. Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh are all cities included in the top 20 hottest cities across the United States.

*Data for the month of August through the 17th of the month.

Lows this morning dropped down into the upper 50s across the area.  Normal low is 61°.  This was only the second time this month lows dropped to under 60°.  Here is a break-down of how the lows have shaped up so far this month:

We mentioned in a post on August 1 about the need for cooling our homes and businesses (the stats based on departure from normal temperatures).

As of today, we are using 55% above normal cooling need use.  This time last year, we were using 27% below normal use.  This year’s cooling needs have already doubled this point last year…and we have a hot and humid week ahead.

We know it has been a hot summer thus far.   We can keep track of the daily highs, but another interesting stat is our need for cooling.  This looks at how high above normal the temperature is, and is a measure of how much we need to cool our homes.

The high at Toledo Express airport hit 96° today — making it the hottest day of the year so far.  The total of 90-degree days for July is now 11, and the total for the year is 15.

Heat and humidity will last through Saturday, so we should add one more 90° day onto the above totals.  Cooler weather will settle in for early next week, but some 90° weather is possible later in the week.