Rain, rain, actually going away

For Pete Altringer, the June-long slog-athon that has lapped into July has been almost a complete washout.

"This by far was the worst month of the year," said Altringer, owner of Main Line Auto Wash, which has four very much rained-upon locations in the region.

So, probably more than most people, Altringer was heartened to learn that the monsoon is relenting; that July Fourth might actually be dry and devoid of atmospheric fireworks; and that the weekend could be rain-free.

That would be quite a change. June was one of the remarkable months in the region's weather history. With 10.56 inches of rain officially at Philadelphia International Airport, not only was it the wettest June on record, it was the sixth-wettest month overall.

That's impressive, given that Philadelphia has one of the nation's oldest records sets, dating to 1872.

The rains around here have been very much related to the horrific heat out West.

The baking of the West and the swamping of the East are part of a stubborn upper-air pattern that put June in the record books across the country. The pattern has been characterized by a powerful ridge in the West, with a mirror-opposite area of lower pressure, favoring storminess, in the East.

"It's been a steady-state pattern," said Dave Dombek, a meteorologist at AccuWeather Inc. "Nothing much has changed."

A huge ridge of high pressure over the North Atlantic, the so-called Bermuda high, is forecast to nudge westward the next few days, and that would be a welcome development for anyone with outdoor plans.

The descending currents of air in high pressure tend to discourage clouds and rain, and the western flank of the ridge could make it far enough westward to keep the region dry on the Fourth.

An expanding Bermuda high would displace that trough in the east and allow for a modest heat wave to build in during the weekend and early next week.

"It's not extreme," he said, and one reason is elementary.

The soils and foliage are so wet that some of the sun's energy that could toast the ground will be diverted toward evaporating moisture.

If the forecast holds, the waterways will be getting a much-needed break, and so will Altringer.

He had one word to describe the outlook: "Awesome."