Nick Allard

Happy Monday! We've reached a subtle turning point in our summer weather. Seattle's average high dropped from 79° yesterday to 78° today, as our normal temperatures begin their slow seasonal decline. Don't worry, summer certainly isn't over, but from here on out our average daily high will gradually trend lower as we head toward fall.

We have another nice summer day ahead, but there will be a few changes to watch as we head into Wednesday and Thursday. A weak weather system will bring more clouds, a chance for thunderstorms in the mountains, and potentially some elevated wildfire smoke into the region.

While lightning is not expected to be widespread, any strikes could spark new fires in our dry mountain areas. Fire danger remains a concern east of the Cascades as well, where gusty winds could make existing fires more difficult to control.

We’re seeing mostly good air quality this morning, with some moderate readings in spots, and a little smoke could mix closer to the surface near the Cascades and north of Everett.

Haze will be noticeable again today, but the good news is that most of it will stay elevated, with minimal impacts at the surface.

So, while the days are getting noticeably shorter, summer isn't done with us yet. We've still got plenty of sunshine and warm afternoons ahead as we wind down August.

Summer is still hanging on, but we're starting to lose daylight pretty quickly now. We're nearly two months past the summer solstice, and we've lost more than two hours of daylight since then.

We’re starting a stretch of quieter weather, but there are some changes coming as we head into the weekend.

Northerly and northeasterly winds aloft will push wildfire smoke into the region.

It will be another hot day, with highs in the upper-80s to lower-90s, making Tuesday the hottest day of the week.