Sunshine, Shades, & Sunblock

Much of Central Virginia will likely have its first 80-degree day of the year today, with the high in Richmond expected to top out at 81 degrees. The warmest temperature so far this year at Richmond International Airport has been 79 degrees on March 20. We will also have full sunshine today and the rest of this week, with only occasional high, thin clouds. We are now into the full swing of Spring, which also means that more of the Sun's incident rays are more directly reaching us in Virginia. That means the UV Index is creeping higher, and some of you may have already had your first sunburn of the season. For Thursday, the UV Index is at 8, which is Very High. For your reference, here's the UV Index Scale from the Environmental Protection Agency:

Over the next week, be sure to protect yourself outdoors as you enjoy the warmer weather!

Warmer & Dry Days

The rest of this week will be much warmer and dry with highs reaching the 80's Thursday through the weekend. Surface high pressure is building in from the Southeast U.S. today, and will settle over the Mid-Atlantic the rest of the week. Here's the surface map early Wednesday morning, where you can see the center of the high pressure is over eastern Tennessee:
This is accompanied by an upper-level ridge as well, which means skies will remain mostly sunny the rest of this week. High temperatures will reach the 80's Thursday through Sunday widespread in Central Virginia for the first time this Spring. The highest temperature in Richmond so far this year is 79 degrees on March 20th.

Minor River Flooding Through Wednesday

After several inches of rainfall the past couple of days, river, creek, and stream levels are rising in the Lower James River Basin and in the Appomattox Basin. However, only minor flooding is expected from Tuesday through Wednesday afternoon in these warned counties. The James River in Richmond will barely reach flood stage today and tomorrow. Here are the forecasts for the two measurement sites near the Huguenot Bridge and near Downtown: