There’s a cool change coming, Utah.
Temperatures along the Wasatch Front, so recently characterized by record-setting heat, will tumble through the remainder of this week. The higher elevations of the Wasatch Front will even see some snow, the National Weather Service says.
After Tuesday’s 90ish highs under sunny skies, Wednesday brings isolated showers and thunderstorms to the Salt Lake and Tooele valleys and a 3-4 degree retreat. More precipitation and cloud cover Thursday drops the mercury into the upper-70s; Friday’s highs, again under stormy skies, will see thermometers slide into the upper-50s.
Those end of the week highs are 15-20 degrees below normal for northern Utah. Indeed, “Time for a cool change,” as the Little River Band once sang. OK, in a desert state you can‘t literally follow singer Glenn Shorrock‘s dream of “sailing on the cool and bright clear water,” but you can feel rain on your face and breathe deep. (And enjoy this video).
Southern Utahns also will see cooler temperatures, though as is typical of the state’s redrocks and high deserts, conditions still will be warm. After Tuesday’s upper-90s and Wednesday’s mid-90s, the St. George area welcomes its own scattered showers and thunderclaps on Thursday, along with highs dipping into the mid-80s; Friday will be in the low-80s.
As for breathing, storms can do wonders for Utah’s air quality. After Wednesday, when pollution levels along the Wasatch Front are forecast to be “yellow,” or moderate on the Utah Division of Air Quality‘s index, the late-week changes for a change to “green,” or healthy are good.
More good news can be found in the Intermountain Allergy & Asthma website’s pollen count. As of Tuesday, only ragweed rated ”high,” with chenopods and mold “moderate.” Other allergens were either “low,” or had slipped off the index entirely.
Less sneezing, hacking and red eyes? As the song says, that’s “kind of a special feeling.”