Seattle weather: A hot Wednesday ahead with a chance of mountain thunderstorms

SEATTLE - Hot temperatures will stick around Wednesday as high pressure remains over the Pacific Northwest, however cooler temperatures are ahead for the Labor Day Weekend.

After Tuesday's record-tying twelfth 90 degree day of the year, Wednesday will be a few degrees cooler with mostly sunny skies. Even though it will be a bit cooler, a Heat Advisory was issued by the National Weather Service for the central and south Puget Sound areas. Be aware of heat related illnesses and make sure to drink plenty of water.

A chance of thunderstorms will linger over the Cascade crest and north central Washington through the afternoon. Other than a few showers we already saw early this morning, west of the mountains will remain dry with more sunshine the second half of the day.

You may see more haze in the atmosphere today due to smoke from wildfires in northern California and southwest Oregon. I do not expect it to greatly impact air quality at the surface, but you'll notice it by sunset tonight.

The holiday weekend looks fantastic, with plenty of sunshine followed by morning clouds on Saturday and Monday. Sunday looks sunny from start to finish. Temps will be much more comfortable, between 75 and 80 degrees for afternoon highs.

Overall, it should be a nice week ahead, with a chance of sprinkles in the morning hours from the low level cloud cover. Enjoy this great late summer weather as we head into September!