The “dog days” of summer are generally considered to occur from July 3 to Aug. 11 in the United States. They refer to the hottest, most sultry period in the summer. The phrase however, has its ancient origins in astronomy, not just the weather. Also, despite the phrase, it has nothing to with actual dogs being hot or lazy.
Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky and is part of the constellation Canis Major, which means “Greater Dog” in Latin. The ancient Greeks and Romans associated Sirius with the heat of summer because of its heliacal rising. They also believed Sirius added its own heat to the sun, making it even hotter. It rises in the eastern predawn sky, right before the sun. It will become very prominent as the month goes on.
The Atlantic and Gulf coasts are primed for storm activity this month.
While it may be traditionally hot this time of the year, the August temperature outlook shows it will be even warmer. The other concern for August is the above average rainfall that is also predicted, some of which will come from tropical weather systems. You have no doubt seen it doesn’t just rain anymore, it floods. This year, we have seen four times the average number of flood warnings. Two or even three month’s worth of rain now falls in hours. Georgia has seen rain like this in June and July in many areas. The ground is fairly saturated and additional heavy rainfall could cause some real issues.
The Atlantic and gulf are warm and primed as hurricane season really begins to ramp up, as you can see in the climatology from the National Hurricane Center.
Based on the past 30 years, the graph below shows where storms are most likely to for this month. NOAA believes, as do I, much of the above average rainfall this month will likely be brought by tropical weather systems. It does not have to be a full-blown hurricane or tropical storm to cause problems. Even a weak tropical system can bring flooding rains. One such system brought the devastating floods to Texas last month that killed 200-plus men, women, and children.
Georgia of course, is hot and steamy in August, still primed for afternoon thunderstorms. These storms can escalate into dramatic extreme weather events, outside of any tropical activity. Just two years ago, on August 3-8, 12 and 15, multiple rounds of severe storms occurred, being fed by extremely unstable air and moisture, and produced winds of more than 70 mph. This caused widespread tree damage all across north and central Georgia.
During August 28 and 29, also in 2023, we saw thunderstorms producing incredible rainfall rates. Many of us saw an entire month’s worth of rain in just 1 hour! Many areas saw 7-8 inches of rain.
August is a great month to enjoy the last of summer but is host to a wide variety of weather. From intense heat, supercells, and hurricanes. It’s a good month to invest in a weather alert radio.
Graphic: courtesy National Hurricane Center
