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Check out my latest Eugene Daily News Weather Or Not Column Oregon Was The First State To Make It A Holiday.

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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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Here is my new weekly weather quiz question. What is  “popcorn convection?” 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 level high pressure ridge (Shaded “Arch” shape with blue arrows) has taken control of our weather. It will be sunny and increasingly warmer today, actually hot for following two days as that ridge of high pressure takes over. As the winds strengthen from the east we will see more smoke from the wildfire near Oakridge penetrate into the valley areas Friday and Saturday. A cold front will move into Oregon between Sunday night and Monday afternoon hopefully cleaning the smoke from the valley.

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Advisories:

• A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM TONIGHT FOR STRONG WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY FOR FIRE FOR THE UMPQUA NATIONAL FOREST, THE WESTERN ROGUE RIVER, THE SISKIYOU NATIONAL FOREST, THE WESTERN ROGUE BASIN INCLUDING THE ILLINOIS VALLEY, THE SISKIYOU MOUNTAINS, THE EASTERN ROGUE VALLEY, AND THE SOUTHERN OREGON CASCADES.
• A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY IN ADDITION TO CRITICALLY DRY AND AND UNSTABLE CONDITIONS UNTIL 11 PM SATURDAY FOR ALL OF WESTERN OREGON FROM THE COAST TO THE WEST SLOPES OF THE NORTHERN AND CENTRAL CASCADES.
• A FIRE WEATHER WATCH IS IN EFFECT FROM FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH THROUGH FRIDAY EVENING FOR WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY FOR THE EAST SLOPES OF THE CENTRAL OREGON CASCADES, THE DESCHUTES NATIONAL FOREST -MINUS SISTERS RANGER DISTRICT, AND THE EAST SLOPES OF THE NORTHERN OREGON CASCADES.
• A HEALTH ADVISORY CONTINUES 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 40 in the Good category measuring Particulate Matter at HWY 99, Eugene. Data courtesy of Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA)

Oakridge: The Air Quality Index is 63 in the Moderate category measuring Particulate Matter at Willamette Activity Center, Oakridge. Data courtesy of Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA)

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Your Saturday College Football Forecasts:

Ducks vs Michigan State at Autzen Stadium Eugene: Kickoff 3:30 pm – mostly sunny, temperature near 92 warming to near 95 then cooling through the 80s as the game progresses. Dress for the heat, use plenty of sunscreen, and drink plenty of water to stay hydrated at the game, or if you’re outside anywhere else.

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Beavers vs Hawaii at Aloha Stadium Honolulu, HI: Kickoff 7:30 pm (4:30 pm Hawaii time) -mostly sunny temperature near 87 cooling to near 80 and mostly clear as the game finishes.

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

• Sunny and warmer today, breezy (Wind: N 5-10 mph increasing to NE 15-25 mph this afternoon) clear tonight,
• Sunny and hot with patchy smoke Friday and Saturday, clear with patchy smoke Friday night, patchy smoke in the evening, mostly clear Saturday night.
• highs 87-95 lows 45-48.
• Mostly sunny and cooler Sunday, partly cloudy Sunday night,
• A mix of clouds and sun and cooler Monday, partly cloudy with a slight (20%) chance of showers late Monday night and Tuesday AM, partly cloudy Tuesday afternoon and at night,
• Then partly cloudy Wednesday AM, then mostly sunny in the afternoon.
• highs 85-79 warming back to 85 Wednesday lows 52-55 cooling back to 52 Tuesday night. (seasonal averages high 80 low 49)

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Forecast for the Umpqua Basin including Roseburg:

• Sunny and warmer today, Friday, and Saturday, mostly clear each night.
• highs 93-100 lows 57-60 warming to 55 Saturday night.
• Sunny Sunday, clear in the evening, then partly cloudy Sunday night through Wednesday.
• highs 90-83 warming to 87 Wednesday lows 54-56. (seasonal averages high 82 low 53)

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

• Sunny today, clear tonight,
• Sunny with inland haze Friday afternoon, clear with inland haze at night,
• Sunny Saturday, then mostly clear and cooler Saturday night.
• highs 72-83 cooling to 76 Saturday lows 54-59 cooling back to 54 Saturday night.
• Partly cloudy Sunday and Sunday night, mostly cloudy Monday through Tuesday, then just partly cloudy Tuesday night and Wednesday.
• highs 69-65 lows near 55. (seasonal averages high 66 low 52)

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Forecast for the Cascades in Lane County:

• Sunny today, clear tonight,
• Sunny with patchy smoke and warmer Friday, clear with patchy smoke at night,
• Mostly sunny with patchy smoke Saturday, patchy smoke in the evening, then mostly clear late Saturday night,
• free air freezing level 12,000 ft. today, 13,000 ft. tonight, 14,000 ft. Friday through Saturday night.
• highs 72-80 lows 42-48.
• Mostly sunny Sunday, mostly clear at night,
• Partly cloudy Monday, partly cloudy with a slight (20%) chance of showers late Monday night and Tuesday AM, partly cloudy in the afternoon afternoon through Wednesday AM, then mostly sunny Wednesday afternoon.
• free air freezing level 14,000 ft. Sunday, 13,000 ft. Sunday night and Monday, snow level above 8,000 ft. Monday night and Tuesday, free air freezing level 14,000 ft. Tuesday night, then 15,000 ft. Wednesday.
• highs 79-68 warming to 74 Wednesday lows 45-42 warming to 44 Tuesday night.

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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 EugeneDailyNews.com.

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