What conditions could diminish our flooding risk

There are a couple of things that could help mitigate our flooding threat for this week. The most obvious way to lower that threat for flooding is to get this rainfall out of the area, but Mother Nature could give us a few other factors to help dry out mid-Missouri.

Like I told you last week, flooding potential can have a lot to do with the soil saturation levels in that area. In order to dry out the soil, you need the rain to stop, the sun to come out, and for that moisture to evaporate. Evaporation happens when liquid water is heated to a point where it turns into a gas. That gas then is released into the atmosphere. When the atmosphere is dry, more evaporation can happen as the air can hold more water. But when the atmosphere is humid, it’s hard for that water in the ground to evaporate as the air is already saturated or full of water. 

So if we want our ground to dry out, we first need the rain to stop. Then, we need low humidity and warmer days so that the moisture in the ground evaporates. Even if it’s humid, we could still see that water evaporating if there's a wind present. Winds are typically dry which would provide a layer of dry air for that moisture to evaporate into. 

Unfortunately, we’re not tracking a ton of sunshine for the upcoming week, but hopefully tomorrow and Wednesday will give just enough sunshine to help dry up some of mid-Missouri.