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Good news! The forecast is finally shaping up to be in our favor for the #solareclipse2017. Those of you waking up early, don't be discouraged by the marine push early. We're expecting to see low clouds form overnight and stick with us until about 8:00-9:00 a.m. By 9:00 a.m., a lot of those clouds will be shifting out of the region, giving us optimal viewing capabilities.
However, the shadow of the moon will have a strong effect on the atmosphere.
Given the general pattern on Monday, without an eclipse, it should be warm enough by 9-10 a.m. to clear off any low clouds that are around. Temperatures should have warmed 5-10 degrees from the overnight lows.
However, starting a 9:08 a.m. Monday, we will see our heat source (the sun) gradually be turned down. This is going to keep the temperature from rising and probably cool it after 9:30 a.m. or so, and especially around 10:20 a.m. when 92 percent of our heat source will be covered by the moon.
The problem is, if we cool the air right after the clouds have cleared, it won't take much cooling to raise the relative humidity back to near 100 percent and cause clouds to reform around maximum coverage. I actually saw this happen at a total eclipse in Hawaii. Around totality, clouds began to reform.
The good news, for now, is that early morning cloudiness should be limited so the cooling should not produce more clouds over the interior. We'll know by Monday afternoon. Should be fun to watch!