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[August 17, 2011] (AP) The southern Plains will continue to see hot temperatures on Wednesday, while the central Plains will see areas of active weather. A ridge of high pressure positioned over the Gulf states will produce sunny and hot weather over the southern Plains.

In addition, the South and Southeast will also experience warm and humid conditions, with showers and thunderstorms popping up over Florida due to the available moisture.

To the north, high pressure will settle in on the Northeast behind a trough of low pressure, bringing cooler and drier conditions. Expect possible storms to kick up over parts of eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina.

In the central U.S., an upper-level trough will dip into the central states, pushing a well-defined cold front through the central Plains and the upper Great Lakes. Showers are expected to develop along this front, with possible severe thunderstorms for the western central Plains. This system is expected to intensify through Wednesday as the trough from the north pulls in moisture from the western Gulf of Mexico. However, relief from high temperatures is not expected for the southern Plains as minimal cooling is behind this front. Temperatures will reach over 100 degrees, with heat indexes near 115.

To the east, moisture will continue to push from the south into the Southwest, triggering showers at higher elevations in Arizona and New Mexico as well as isolated showers in Colorado and Utah. Meanwhile, most of the western U.S. will see sunny and mild conditions.

Temperatures in the Lower 48 states Tuesday ranged from a morning low of 26 degrees at Stanley, Idaho, to a high of 104 degrees at Alva, Okla.

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[Associated Press article from Weather Underground]