Prolonged Hot Temperatures Bake the West as Summer's Heat Is Absent in the Midwest and Plains in July's Final Week

Cascade Snow To Be Measured In Feet

Parts of the West will continue to swelter, but the Midwest and Plains are experiencing another plunge of cool Canadian air as July comes to an end.

A dome of high pressure responsible for the ongoing extreme heat in the Southwest will contribute to a prolonged period of hot weather in the Pacific Northwest.

Meanwhile, temperatures have been relatively comfortable for late July in the northern Plains and Midwest of late, and a new cold front is reinforcing this weather pattern during the second half of this week.

(MORE: August-October Outlook)

Prolonged Western Heat

Dangerous heat levels will be found across the Southwest and parts of the inland West Coast through Saturday. 

Waco, Texas, set a new all-time record high Monday when it reached 114 degrees. The previous record was 112 degrees on Aug. 11, 1969.

Yuma, Arizona, and Tucson, Arizona, set new record highs Tuesday of 118 degrees and 112 degrees, respectively. Phoenix tied its record high of 116 degrees for the day on Tuesday, as did San Diego (85 degrees).

Both Tuesday and Wednesday, Death Valley set a new daily record high of 127 degrees and it tied the daily record of 127 degrees on Thursday and Friday.

On Wednesday, new daily record high temperatures were set in Phoenix (116 degrees), Las Vegas (115 degrees - tied), Tucson, Arizona (110 degrees), Sacramento (109 degrees - tied) and Seattle (88 degrees).

Fresno, California, will likely set a new record for the most days in a row over 100 degrees on Friday with 22 days, according to the National Weather Service. 

The ridge of high pressure will also bring a long-lasting period of hot weather to inland areas of the Pacific Northwest.

(MORE: The Nation's Least Air-Conditioned City is Having One of Its Hottest Julys on Record)

Afternoon readings through this weekend in Portland, Oregon, will soar into the 90s. If Portland remains in the 90s through Sunday, it would tie the city's second-longest streak of 90s at eight days.

Summer's Heat Takes a Vacation

High temperatures will be 5 to 20 degrees below average throughout the northern and central Plains, upper Midwest, Great Lakes and Ohio Valley following a strong mid-summer cold front.

This means highs will generally be in the 70s and lower 80s through July's final weekend.

(MORE: Forecast Temperature Maps)

Humidity will be low throughout the Midwest because of this refreshing air mass.

Chicago's average high is in the mid-80s this time of year, but the Windy City will be in the 70s into early next week.

The average high in Kansas City in late July is near 90 degrees. Daytime readings there through Tuesday will hold near 80 degrees.

For those who don't enjoy summer's heat, the timing of this cool weather pattern couldn't be better since it's typically the hottest time of the year in parts of the Plains and Midwest.

Cooler-than-average temperatures may last into the beginning of August for portions of the Upper Midwest.