Smoke decreasing with monsoon moisture returning over the weekend into next week

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) – Happy Thursday, Utah! We continue with smoke and haze for the state as northerly flow is ushering it in from wildfires upstream.

The bottom line? Decreasing smoke into the weekend with warming temperatures. Monsoonal moisture returns over the weekend as well.

Smoke will make it as far south as St. George, but will generally stay west of the mountains. As the high-pressure ridge slides in from the west, we’ll see winds shift from a predominately north/northwest flow to a more eastern flow.

That will help start clearing out some of the smoke, but much of it will linger. Temperatures will remain similar to what we saw on Wednesday, highs will be in the 80s along the Wasatch Front while St. George will have triple-digit heat.

On Friday, the high-pressure ridge will remain over the state and bring more sunshine statewide. As this ridge shifts eastward over the weekend, some moisture will start to move in from the south.

This means there might be isolated showers and thunderstorms on Sunday afternoon, mostly over the higher areas of southern Utah.

By Monday, rain chances will spread across much of Utah. The increased moisture will stick around through early Tuesday before clearing out. Strong wind gusts and lightning will likely be the biggest concerns with storms next week.

By Tuesday afternoon, the winds will shift slightly to a southwesterly direction, bringing drier air back into the area and limiting rain chances to higher elevations, especially in the northern part of the state. Temperatures will likely remain roughly 5 degrees above seasonal averages for much of next week.

We’ll give you the latest updates in our 4Warn Weather forecast both on-air and online.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah.