‘Strongest Heat Dome’ Currently on Earth Blankets Texas Through the Mid-South

A record-setting heat dome is blanketing tens of millions of people from Texas through the Mid-South this week. ​

“This is the strongest heat dome at present globally,” Jason Moreland, Director of Meteorology for AlertMedia, said. “We’re also looking at one of the strongest heat domes on record for this part of the country at this time of the year.”

The sweltering heat stretches from the Texas State Capitol in Austin to beyond the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.

Moreland noted that at present, it’s even stronger than the Sahara Desert and the Middle East.

“From Wednesday through Saturday, roughly 22 to 30 locations each day are forecast to either tie, break, or come within one degree of their daily record high,” Moreland said.

The senior meteorologist added that from Sept. 16 to 21, there could be 73 “individual daily high-temperature forecasts” expected to tie or break an existing record.

Even though astronomical fall is on the calendar for Sept. 22, it’s not necessarily on the thermometer.

“While the core of the heat dome may weaken a bit heading into early next week, there are still no indications of fall-like weather for much of the East any time soon,” Moreland stated.

A heat dome is described as a large, strong area of high pressure in the mid-levels of the atmosphere that traps hot air underneath.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Nashville has a heat advisory in effect for the middle of Tennessee through 8 p.m. Saturday and is urging people to limit time outdoors between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. as the area braces for 100-degree days.

The warm temperatures will feel like 108 degrees with the humidity, according to the NWS Nashville office’s forecast.

On Tuesday, the Nashville International Airport—which is in the process of being renamed after country music icon Dolly Parton—reported a record-setting 100 degrees. The old record was 98 degrees in 1927.

The NWS in Austin/San Antonio warned elevated heat would continue through Sept. 22, with temperatures in Austin feeling around 110 degrees.

“Many communities will experience several consecutive days of near-record heat, while unusually warm overnight temperatures provide little relief,” Moreland said.

Residents in Dallas have faced fierce temperatures in recent weeks.

Every day this month—except for Sept. 3—Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport has reported high temperatures at or above 100 degrees, according to NWS data.

Oklahoma City has reported only three days in September with high temperatures under 100 degrees, according to NWS data in Norman, Oklahoma.