NJ’s heat wave continues through the weekend, watch for thunderstorms Friday

The Bottom Line

The heat rolls on across New Jersey through this weekend and early next week too. Highs will reach into the 90s again Friday, with a heat index near 100 degrees. Plus, a round of scattered strong thunderstorms is looking more and more likely starting late afternoon, with gusty winds and downpours practically a certainty. Saturday stays unbearably steamy, with spot thunderstorms possible. And then Sunday will turn slightly less humid, but still hot. At least that will allow overnights to cool slightly, knock down the daily storm chances, and kick the heat index out of the danger zone. The heat wave is set to break around the middle of next week, with highs in the 80s by Wednesday and Thursday.

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Weather Hazards

A Heat Advisory continues for most of New Jersey until 8 p.m. Saturday. (Some parts of New Jersey will see the advisory expire Friday evening instead.) The heat index — the summertime “feels like” or “apparent” temperature — will be close to 100 degrees for most of Friday. This is still not historic, record-breaking heat. But it is unseasonable and uncomfortable. And serious enough that you need to take care of yourself.

Dress appropriately for the hot weather, stay extra hydrated, and take frequent cooldown breaks whenever possible. Air quality is also poor, so those with heart and lung difficulties, the very young, and the very old should stay in air conditioning as much as possible.

The other big alarm bell for Friday is the threat for strong to severe thunderstorms. Pockets of very heavy rain will be the biggest concern, as we have seen numerous times over the past few weeks. But the atmosphere will be highly unstable too, fueling the potential for gusty winds. Eyes on the sky starting around 4 p.m. Friday, and be prepared to head indoors when thunder roars.

Climatological Context

August 7 is the 219th day of 2026.

Normal high temperatures range from 85 to 86 degrees, while normal low temperatures range from 66 to 67 degrees.

It is also worth mentioning that the record high temperatures for August 7th around the state are 105 at Newark Airport, 105 at Trenton Airport, and 97 at Atlantic City Airport. Those records are almost certainly safe — temperatures will not even be close to those numbers Friday afternoon.

Remember, August is, on average, New Jersey’s second hottest and second wettest month of the year.

Friday

Welcome to heat wave day #2 of 6. Yes, the heat rolls on.

It is incredibly warm and muggy across New Jersey early Friday morning. Most temperatures are in the 70s, but some cities and Shore points did not drop below 80 degrees overnight. Urban areas especially swelter in this kind of heat and humidity. Unfortunately, there is no real “reset” when it is that warm at night and then blisteringly hot again during the day.

Friday starts mostly sunny, hot, and humid. High temperatures will reach the lower 90s or so. The hotspot on Thursday reached 95 degrees — that will be the case on Friday too. With the humidity, the heat index will end up close to 100 degrees.

The atmosphere will become increasingly unstable through the afternoon. With plentiful moisture in the air to feed off, all we need is one little spark, and the atmosphere can explode into widespread thunderstorms.

The main thunderstorm window is about 4 p.m. to Midnight. Pockets of heavy rain seem like a guarantee given the thick humidity. Gusty winds and frequent lightning are possible too through Friday evening.

As storms exit Friday night, we will be left with partly cloudy skies and steamy conditions overnight. Lows will only fall into the mid 70s.

Saturday

The heat wave continues this weekend.

Expect a mix of sun and clouds on Saturday, as highs return to the lower 90s. Definitely another steamy day across the Garden State. If you play on making it a beach day, you may find some relief with a sea breeze — but it will still be very warm, and incredibly humid at the Jersey Shore.

A spot late-day shower or thunderstorm is possible. Saturday’s storm chance does not look as widespread or impactful as Friday’s, but the atmosphere will still be hot and humid enough.

Sunday

There is one slight change in the weather for this weekend: a small reduction in humidity from Saturday to Sunday. That will make overnight temperatures a bit more bearable, knock down daily storm chances, and pull the heat index down out of the "danger zone" too.

But Sunday is still going to be hot.

Expect hazy sunshine, with highs between 90 and 95 degrees.

Monday & Beyond

Monday stays mostly sunny, with highs again between 90 and 95 degrees. One more day of widespread 90s is expected on Tuesday, possible with an isolated shower or thunderstorm back in play.

The break should finally come around Wednesday or Thursday, as cooler, drier air works into New Jersey. Once it does, the pendulum may swing in the other direction — long-range models show the possibility of cooler than normal, downright comfortable weather carrying through the middle part of August.

That is not a guarantee yet, but wouldn’t that be nice?

Dan Zarrow is Chief Meteorologist for Townsquare Media New Jersey. Follow him on Facebook for the latest forecast and realtime weather updates.