The National Weather Service forecasts sunny and hot skies here in Cobb County on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, with a high near 98 degrees.

The National Weather Service has issued a hazardous weather outlook for Cobb County and other parts of the region due to very hot temperatures that are expected this afternoon, with highs rising into the upper 90s to low 100s. High fire danger conditions are also expected this afternoon into the evening for portions of north and central Georgia due to low relative humidities.

What you will read in this article

1. The extended forecast for Cobb County
2. Last month’s climate summary for the metro Atlanta region
3. The climate almanac for metro Atlanta
4. What the National Weather Service is, and what it does

What does the extended forecast have in store?

This forecast is centered on Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta.

Today

Sunny and hot, with a high near 98. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon. 

Tonight

A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms between 10 p.m and 3 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 73. West wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20 percent.

Thursday

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 2 p.m. Partly sunny, with a high near 92. West wind around 5 mph. 

Thursday Night

A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8 p.m. Partly cloudy, with a low around 73. North wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening. 

Friday

A slight chance of showers, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 11 a.m. Mostly sunny, with a high near 93. Calm wind becoming south around 5 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 40 percent.

Friday Night

A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 8 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 75.

Saturday

A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 8 a.m. Partly sunny, with a high near 94.

Saturday Night

A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 8 p.m. Partly cloudy, with a low around 76.

Sunday

A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 95.

Sunday Night

A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 2 a.m. Partly cloudy, with a low around 74.

Monday

A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Sunny, with a high near 95.

Monday Night

A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly clear, with a low around 73.

Tuesday

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 93.

What was the climate like in the latest reporting period?

The NWS climate summary for metro Atlanta has now been updated with May 2024 figures.

In an article entitled What is the Difference between Climate and Weather?, the National Ocean Service describes the difference as follows:

“Weather is what you see outside on any particular day. So, for example, it may be 75° degrees and sunny or it could be 20° degrees with heavy snow. That’s the weather.

“Climate is the average of that weather. For example, you can expect snow in the Northeast in January or for it to be hot and humid in the Southeast in July. This is climate. The climate record also includes extreme values such as record high temperatures or record amounts of rainfall. If you’ve ever heard your local weather person say “today we hit a record high for this day,” she is talking about climate records.

“So when we are talking about climate change, we are talking about changes in long-term averages of daily weather. In most places, weather can change from minute-to-minute, hour-to-hour, day-to-day, and season-to-season. Climate, however, is the average of weather over time and space.”

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The climate report for the Atlanta area for the previous month shows how much departure from the average temperatures that month represents. The average temperature for a date is the average over a 30-year period.

Date	Max	Min	Average	Departure from norm	Precipitation
2024-05-01	85	61	73	5.7	0
2024-05-02	86	64	75	7.5	0
2024-05-03	87	70	78.5	10.7	T
2024-05-04	80	64	72	3.9	0.03
2024-05-05	87	66	76.5	8.2	T
2024-05-06	86	67	76.5	7.9	0.01
2024-05-07	84	68	76	7.1	0
2024-05-08	87	72	79.5	10.3	T
2024-05-09	78	66	72	2.6	0.68
2024-05-10	82	63	72.5	2.8	0.17
2024-05-11	76	55	65.5	-4.5	0
2024-05-12	81	59	70	-0.2	0
2024-05-13	67	63	65	-5.5	0.03
2024-05-14	78	63	70.5	-0.2	0.02
2024-05-15	81	66	73.5	2.5	T
2024-05-16	85	62	73.5	2.2	0
2024-05-17	73	68	70.5	-1	0.02
2024-05-18	77	66	71.5	-0.3	0.09
2024-05-19	83	65	74	2	T
2024-05-20	85	64	74.5	2.2	0
2024-05-21	86	67	76.5	4	0
2024-05-22	87	67	77	4.2	0
2024-05-23	88	70	79	6	0
2024-05-24	90	71	80.5	7.2	0
2024-05-25	85	68	76.5	3	0.54
2024-05-26	89	71	80	6.2	0
2024-05-27	87	65	76	2	1.36
2024-05-28	86	69	77.5	3.3	0
2024-05-29	86	64	75	0.5	T
2024-05-30	84	63	73.5	-1.2	0
2024-05-31	83	63	73	-1.9	0

Climate Almanac for metro Atlanta

This almanac provides information on past climate conditions for today’s date, June 26, allowing a comparison to current weather. 

Simply put, it helps you see what the weather would typically be like on this day, according to historical data.

Daily Data	Observed	Normal	Record Highest	Record Lowest
Max Temperature	M	89	100 in 1914	70 in 1991
Min Temperature	M	70	77 in 1952	56 in 1974
Avg Temperature	M	79.6	87.5 in 1914	67.0 in 1991
Precipitation	M	0.17	1.02 in 1991	0.00 in 2023
Snowfall	M	0.0	0.0 in 2023	0.0 in 2023
Snow Depth	M	–	0 in 2023	0 in 2023
HDD (base 65)	M	0	0 in 2023	0 in 2023
CDD (base 65)	M	15	23 in 1914	2 in 1991
Month-to-Date Summary	Observed	Normal	Record Highest	Record Lowest
Avg Max Temperature	90.5	86.8	92.8 in 1952	78.4 in 1997
Avg Min Temperature	71.0	68.3	72.1 in 2010	61.3 in 1972
Avg Temperature	80.8	77.6	81.8 in 1952	70.7 in 1997
Total Precipitation	0.96	3.86	11.12 in 1912	0.15 in 1988
Total Snowfall	0.0	0.0	T in 2012	0.0 in 2024
Max Snow Depth	0	–	0 in 2024	0 in 2024
Total HDD (base 65)	0	1	26 in 1913	0 in 2024
Total CDD (base 65)	399	327	443 in 1952	171 in 1965
Year-to-Date Summary	Observed	Normal	Record Highest	Record Lowest
Avg Max Temperature	71.9	69.6	73.0 in 2012	63.2 in 1895
Avg Min Temperature	52.6	49.9	53.7 in 2017	43.3 in 1940
Avg Temperature	62.3	59.8	63.3 in 2017	53.8 in 1940
Total Precipitation	27.94	25.05	42.92 in 1912	12.33 in 1986
Total Snowfall (since July 1)	T	2.2	10.9 in 1936	0.0 in 2019
Max Snow Depth (since July 1)	0	–	8 in 1940	0 in 2024
Total HDD (since July 1)	2040	2543	3832 in 1977	1690 in 2017
Total CDD (since Jan 1)	805	625	805 in 2024	282 in 1997

Period of Record:

• Max Temperature : 1878-10-04 to 2024-06-25
• Min Temperature : 1878-10-04 to 2024-06-25
• Precipitation : 1878-10-01 to 2024-06-25
• Snowfall : 1928-12-25 to 2024-06-25
• Snow Depth : 1928-12-25 to 2024-06-25

For much more information on the climate in our area, visit the NWS Climate FAQ for the Atlanta area.

What does the National Weather Service do?

The National Weather Service (NWS) is a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The NWS describes its role as follows:

“The National Weather Service (NWS) provides weather, water, and climate forecasts and warnings for the United States, its territories, adjacent waters and ocean areas, for the protection of life and property and the enhancement of the national economy. 

“These services include Forecasts and Observations, Warnings, Impact-based Decision Support Services, and Education in an effort to build a Weather-Ready Nation. The ultimate goal is to have a society that is prepared for and responds to weather, water and climate events.”