Lower rain chances on Wednesday with afternoon storms tracking west

ORLANDO, Fla. - Wednesday's rain chances will be lower than usual for mid-July, with just 30% coverage, mainly affecting Marion, Flagler, and Alachua counties. Most areas around Orlando and east of the beaches are expected to stay dry.

Typical summer rain chances return on Thursday, with around 60% coverage each afternoon and evening. Highs will remain above average in the mid to upper 90s.

LONG RANGE: Classic July weather is expected, with scattered afternoon and evening storms across Central Florida, primarily along the sea breezes. Next week, temperatures will decrease slightly, with highs closer to 90 or even in the 80s by midweek, as more clouds and earlier rain and storms move into the area.

Tracking the Tropics

Because of the Saharan Dust and the phase of the MJO (Madden-Julian-Oscillation), things will remain quiet. Fingers crossed, the rest of July should be storm-free. 

We will not see any concrete signals for more formidable tropical development in the Atlantic Ocean until probably the second week of August. The next name on our storm list for the Atlantic basin is "Debby." 

Do not let this fool you. A few weeks of quiet now is not an indicator of the rest of the season being quiet. In 2005, it was a very similar vibe, with an extremely early intense hurricane, then a quiet stretch into early-mid August, and then things went bonkers in September and October. So, the point is that the predictions for an extremely busy year remain right now.