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Check out my latest Eugene Daily News Weather Or Not Column Can The Weather Really Be A “Pain In The Back?”

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And don’t forget my latest feature story in the continuing series on service club organizations called “Buffalo Isn’t Only Known For Its Wings.”

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No winner this week so here is my weekly weather quiz question for the last time. What is a “Panhandle Hook?”  Here is the correct answer. A Panhandle Hook forms when low pressure systems that originate in the panhandle region of Texas and Oklahoma initially move east and then “hook” or recurve more northeast toward the upper Midwest or Great Lakes region. In winter, these systems usually deposit heavy snows north of their surface track. Thunderstorms may be found south of the track. I’ll have a new weekly weather quiz question for you starting Monday. Please remember to post your answer as a comment by clicking on “no comments /comments” in the upper right hand portion of this page under the caption, then add your comment. The first person to post the correct answer will win a week of free personalized weather forecasts tailored to your needs. The answer has to be a comment to win. An email answer will not count. Good luck.

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An upper air low pressure trough is sliding southward and will give us some more clouds, slightly cooler temperatures, coastal drizzle, and a chance of mountain thunderstorms. An upper level high pressure ridge will move out of the Gulf of Alaska to return warmer temperatures next week.

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Advisories:

• A HEALTH ADVISORY ISSUED FOR THE PRESENCE OF HIGHER-THAN-NORMAL FECAL BACTERIA AT MILL BEACH IN CURRY COUNTY HAS BEEN LIFTED.
• A HEALTH ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THE PRESENCE OF BLUE-GREEN ALGAE FOR WALTERVILLE POND IN LANE COUNTY AND AT DEVILS LAKE IN LINCOLN COUNTY. THE TOXIC ALGAE BLOOM MEANS THAT PEOPLE SHOULD NOT HAVE DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE AFFECTED WATER AND THAT ALSO GOES FOR ANY PETS.

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Air Quality Index:

Eugene-Springfield: The Air Quality Index is 53 in the Moderate category measuring Ozone at Amazon Park, Eugene. Data courtesy of Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA)

Oakridge: The Air Quality Index is 23 in the Good category measuring Particulate Matter at Willamette Activity Center, Oakridge. Data courtesy of Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA)

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The Grass Pollen Season is over.

Eugene-Springfield Pollen Count:

Grass………. Moderate (6)

Trees………. Absent (0)

Last Counted: 8/6/14

Data Courtesy of Oregon Allergy Associates

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Forecast for the Southern and lower Mid Willamette Valley including Eugene-Springfield and Albany-Corvallis:

• Mostly sunny and cooler today, mostly clear tonight,
• Partly cloudy Monday AM, sunny in the afternoon, mostly clear Monday night,
• Mostly sunny and warmer Tuesday, then mostly clear at night.
• highs 84-94 lows 52-55.
• Mostly sunny Wednesday and Thursday AM, mostly clear Wednesday night, partly cloudy Thursday night,
• Partly cloudy Friday afternoon and evening, mostly cloudy late at night,
• Then mostly cloudy with a (30%) chance of showers Saturday afternoon.
• highs 92-80 lows 55-53. (seasonal averages high 82 low 51)

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Forecast for the Umpqua Basin including Roseburg:

• Sunny and warmer today, partly cloudy this evening, mostly cloudy late tonight,
• Mostly cloudy Monday AM, sunny and warmer in the afternoon and Tuesday, then clear both nights.
• highs 85-96 lows 60-62.
• Sunny Wednesday, partly cloudy Wednesday night through Friday evening, then mostly cloudy with a slight (20%) chance of showers  Friday night and Saturday.
• highs 98-88 warming to 90 Saturday lows 62-60. (seasonal averages high 84 low 55)

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Forecast for the South Oregon Coast including Coos Bay and North Bend:

• Areas of AM coastal fog, partly cloudy this afternoon, mostly cloudy tonight,
• Mostly cloudy with patchy AM coastal fog Monday and sunny and warmer in the afternoon, mostly clear Monday night,
• Patchy coastal fog Tuesday AM, sunny and warmer in the afternoon, partly cloudy with areas of fog Tuesday night.
• highs 66-72 lows near 55.
• Mostly cloudy with areas of AM fog, partly cloudy Wednesday and at night,
• Partly cloudy Thursday through Friday, then mostly cloudy with a slight (20%) chance of showers Friday night and Saturday.
• highs 66-64 warming back to 66 Saturday lows 55-57. (seasonal averages high 66 low 53)

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Forecast for the Cascades in Lane County:

• Mostly sunny and warmer today and Monday, mostly clear both nights,
• Mostly sunny and warmer Tuesday, then mostly clear at night.
• free air freezing level 12,000 ft. today, 11,000 ft. tonight, 12,000 ft. Monday, 13,000 ft. Monday night, 15,000 ft. Tuesday, then 16,000 ft. Tuesday night.
• highs 70-82 lows 45-52.
• Mostly sunny Wednesday and Thursday, partly cloudy and cooler in the afternoon and Thursday night,
• Mostly sunny in the morning, partly cloudy with a slight (20%) chance of showers Friday afternoon and at night,
• A mix of clouds and sun with a slight (20%) chance of AM showers, then a good (50%) chance of showers Saturday afternoon.
• free air freezing level 15,000 ft. Wednesday, 16,000 ft. Wednesday night, 15,000 ft. Thursday and Thursday night, snow level above 8,000 ft. Friday through Saturday.
• highs 84-69 lows 50-44.

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**Because weather forecasting is a combination of science, intuition, and timing there can be no absolute guarantees that individual forecasts will be 100% accurate. Nature is in a constant state of flux and sudden unexpected weather events can happen.

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Get your local Eugene-Springfield and Lane County news on-line at Eugene Daily News.com.

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