A Department of Meteorology and atmospheric science at Penn State.

This is Weather World.

Good evening and welcome to Weather World.

It's Wednesday, June 3rd, 2026.

I'm Caitlin joined by our forecaster Carl Schneider.

And Carl.

We've got sunny skies out there today.

Is that going to stick around in the forecast?

Yeah, lots of sun in the short range forecast.

Caitlin.

And a bit of an increase in temperatures as well.

We'll hear more about that in Carl's short range forecast on the show today.

Also on the show today we'll have a new extended forecast and will be airing a feature of weather wise about the weather on D-Day.

But first, over to Carl.

Thanks very much, Caitlin.

Dry weather in store for our short range forecast and bit of a warming trend as well.

Increasing the temperatures a few degrees every day.

Plenty of sun summerlike temperatures here on tap.

But it wasn't summer like this morning.

Look at Bradford checking in at 37 this morning.

Elsewhere, largely in the 40s, you'll notice quite a bit of a difference between some of the urban areas and the outlying areas.

And this is very common when we have these setups where we have calm winds, clear skies, very dry ground, and I think will be the case once again tonight where some of the rural locations get into the 40s.

If you're in the metro area, likely 50 or close to 60.

And we'll start to increase the dew points a little bit towards the end of this period.

And so we won't be quite as cool, but still quite refreshing.

So as we look at the four camera view wall to wall sunshine, you'd be hard pressed to find a cloud today anywhere in Pennsylvania.

It is a officially sunny.

There's not many times you can really say that, and temperatures responded accordingly after we had the chilly start.

We've reached anywhere from the mid 70s in the high ground to low to mid 80s in southeastern Pennsylvania.

As we go through the next couple of days, we're going to be increasing these digits by roughly around 2 to 5 degrees in most locations per day and some locations in southeastern Pennsylvania, by the time we get to Friday will be in the 90s.

Elsewhere, 80s will be pretty commonplace.

Another big story during this whole dry spell is how low the dew points are.

That's allowed a lot of vegetation to dry out.

You might be watering your garden a lot, or noticing your grass is turning brown in your yard.

And that's partially thanks to the fact that the dew points are so low in the 30s and 40s statewide that allows temperatures to tumble at night and keeps it feeling very comfortable during the day.

These numbers will climb a little bit tomorrow, and especially as we get into Friday, but we're still not going to be entering muggy territory anytime soon.

And you can kind of see that here.

On the national view as surface high pressure is in control across the east.

Very anomalously low dew points present across the southeast right now thanks to that upper level Troughing, most of the active weather is occurring in the corridor of greater moisture across the plains.

And as we see in the temperature map, not a lot of extreme heat here, but the main story is that warmer conditions are going to start to seep into Pennsylvania over the next couple of days, and it will take a while before the unsettled weather arrives, because if we look at the radar and satellite, we see much of the unsettled weather, as I said, is across the plains.

We've got a better moisture source.

Those higher dew points.

Our next weather maker is actually spinning in southern Saskatchewan right now, a surface low with a cold front along it will be slowly making its way eastward, but overall the pattern is very blocky.

These weather systems are moving very slowly, so high pressure in control here for the next couple of days.

It will take a while before that system finally nudges eastward.

So we look at that evening.

Surface map surface high pressure in control, no wind, clear skies.

Maybe a good night to do some stargazing tonight as the moon won't rise until after 11:00 local time in most areas.

Um, and you see, by the time we get to tomorrow evening, high pressure remaining in control as it moves to the south, the clockwise flow will bring westerly winds, very light westerly winds across the state tomorrow.

And as this feature continues to move off to the south and east, we tap into some southwesterly flow, possibly accompanied by a little bit more cloud cover on Friday that will allow temperatures to increase dew points as well, but still not getting in necessarily into the muggy category for Friday.

Just starting to feel the moisture a little bit more.

Looking to the west, we see our surface system by Friday evening is still to the west, and it won't be until Saturday before rain chances start making an appearance here once again in Pennsylvania.

So seasonably comfy overnight tonight.

Not as chilly as it was this morning in most areas, but in the outlying areas will be in the 40s 50s in the metro areas.

Clear skies and calm winds overnight tonight moving into Thursday, inching upward in the temperature department about 2 to 5 degrees warmer than it was today in most locations.

Only difference will be the addition of a few high clouds.

I think the winds will be lighter as well, but you can see around 80 to approaching 90 in southeastern Pennsylvania, but not humid again on Thursday will be less of the case on Friday.

Feeling more summerlike still comfortable humidity, but we're starting to feel the moisture a little bit as dew points approach into the 50s.

Mostly sunny and hot in southeastern Pennsylvania.

A bit cooler, a few more clouds in the west.

We're back in a moment with more.

Today's edition of the extended forecast includes the upcoming weekend and the first half of next week.

I see one more day of summer sizzle as we begin the weekend before things become more unsettled, with even some rain chances going into the first few days of next week, we'll try to hammer out those details in just a moment.

First, looking at our steering winds aloft, courtesy of the water vapor satellite imagery, we can see what we've been talking about the last couple of days on the show.

This elongated ridge situated off to our northwest and kind of a trough in place across the east.

And I think we'll see this pattern continue for much of next week.

What that will mean is that our summer sizzle will actually begin to moderate for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, with even the potential for an easterly component to the flow.

Here's a look at our upper air pattern on the European model.

This wrinkle here will be associated with a cold front as we go into the weekend.

I think that will bring the arrival of some precipitation, especially going into the second half of Saturday, Saturday night, and lingering into Sunday as that cold front meanders its way through.

Notice this ridge still beginning to build once again, just off to our west into Hudson Bay.

And I think that will continue to amplify going into the first half of next week.

Models suggesting that this trough deepens and may even cut off an area of low pressure just off to our east.

While that is still a little uncertain if that would actually take place, I think what is looking more likely is that we'll have at least an easterly component to the flow going into Monday, Tuesday and perhaps on Wednesday as well.

Moderating temperatures in the east will still see 80s, I think, in the west likely dry with an area of high pressure setting up at the surface here, but looking a bit more unsettled, I think, as we go through at least this weekend and perhaps Monday of next week.

Precipitation tracker shows the arrival of that precipitation going into, especially the second half of Saturday.

Chances there for some locally heavy rain, especially in the west, could be talking rainfall or gauge totals up to around half an inch in some of those spots, a less heavy.

Especially off to the south and east, but still unsettled there, I think on Sunday.

Then we see high pressure build off to the northeast on Monday.

Notice that easterly component to the flow builds in.

So temperatures likely held back into the 70s in the east for Monday, Tuesday, and maybe even into Wednesday as well.

In some spots with this high pressure kind of lingering just off the New England coastline, area of low pressure sets off just off to the Carolina coastline there at the surface, and may keep them unsettled for the first half of next week.

So extended forecast shows increasing clouds in many areas on Saturday.

Breezy as well.

Temperatures upper 70s in the northwest plateau mid 90s southeast of the mountains.

Still warm day there on Sunday as well with broken clouds.

There's that shower and storm chance locally heavy, especially in the west.

By Monday we start to dry things out.

We are less humid now.

Saturday and Sunday.

Not necessarily humid days, but I think it will be noticeably less humid Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

In Pennsylvania.

More clouds likely lingering east.

Temperatures in the east may only top off in the mid 70s.

Meanwhile lower 80s, I think in western Pennsylvania, we start to see our temperatures gradually rebound a bit.

By the time we get to Wednesday, many of us in the low to mid 80s with mostly sunny skies by the middle of next week.

That's your extended forecast.

We're back in just a moment with more.

Last week, a new movie called pressure came out, dramatizing the behind the scenes whether decisions leading up to D-Day, the Allied invasion to retake Europe on June 6th, 1944.

With the D-Day anniversary on Saturday, it's an appropriate time to take a close look at how the weather forecast factored into one of the most important military operations in history.

Now, by early 1944, allied commanders had decided on June for the invasion.

The full moon was on the sixth.

It would yield the best illumination for pilots.

So Eisenhower had tentatively chosen June 5th.

If the weather cooperated, the operation needed low tide around dawn to expose underwater German mines near the beaches.

Bomber and fighter aircraft required a certain minimum ceiling.

The army wanted firm, dry ground.

The Navy needed good visibility and, of course, limited waves.

In the English Channel three forecast teams two British and one American, overseen by Captain James Stagg of the British Royal Air Force, worked independently and then reached a consensus that Stagg presented to Eisenhower.

Now in 1944, there was no satellite imagery, no weather radar, no computer models.

Even a two day forecast was a huge challenge.

Though the allies controlled the Atlantic, the Germans likely had decoded some Allied weather messages, so they, too had at least a sense for any incoming weather systems.

Now, the weather in early June 1944 in the UK was controlled by an upper air low in the North Atlantic, with high pressure west of Spain.

The fast westerly flow in between sent a parade of storms through the British Isles.

Here's a reconstruction of the weather map early on June 4th.

This is when Eisenhower had to decide whether to stick to June 5th for the invasion.

Stagg told him that another round of wind and rain would likely sweep over the channel on the fifth, but a short break would likely follow on the sixth.

And on that advice, Eisenhower delayed the invasion by 24 hours.

As it turned out, the weather on June 5th was poor.

The invasion would have been next to impossible.

The weather on the sixth was marginal but tolerable.

Seas were choppy and skies gray at dawn to greet the largest amphibious landing force ever assembled at that time.

But the sun came out a bit in the afternoon, and nature cooperated enough so that the Germans, who expected an invasion only during a stretch of fair weather, were surprised their high command had relaxed their aircraft and naval vessels were not fully ready.

Asked years later by John Kennedy why the Normandy invasion had been so successful, Eisenhower reportedly said, because we had better meteorologists than the Germans.

Almost exactly 11 years after D-Day, on June 11th, 1955, Eisenhower, by then president of the United States, gave the commencement address at Penn State, recognizing the importance of a good forecast and knowing that rain was a possibility for the ceremony, Eisenhower had consulted with Penn State meteorology legend Doctor Charles Hosler, who gave the go ahead to have commencement outdoors.

That forecast worked out to stay tuned.

We'll be back in a moment with more.

Lots of time to get out and be by the water in our short range forecast tonight, though a little bit chilly.

Not as cool as it was this morning, but in the 40s in the high ground, low to mid 50s in the southeast, a little bit cooler in the outlying valleys.

And a good night to do some stargazing as it will be dark in the moon's not rising until after 11:00 or so on Thursday.

Temperatures a bit higher than they were today, anywhere from around 80 in the high ground to even upper 80s in southeastern Pennsylvania.

Still comfortable in the humidity department, though not humid, so not feeling overly hot.

A few more high clouds also drifting by than there were today.

On Friday.

Simply summerlike, increasing the temperatures even more low 90s southeast anywhere from the low to mid 80s.

In the higher ground.

Still mostly sunny skies, but increasing the clouds a little bit more and the humidity remaining at relatively comfortable levels.

Dew points will be up in the 50s.

We'll also start to have a bit of a southwesterly flow, which kind of leads us into the weekend forecast, Caitlyn, where we will have a bit of a chance of rain this weekend.

But the main story for the next two days, pretty good pool weather.

Absolutely.

I am very excited to get out there and get my tan on to start off the summer.

Sounds good.

Well, thank you for joining us on the show tonight.

Be sure to join us tomorrow with a feature on weather science experiments from all of us here at Weather World.

Have a great night.