Daily briefing: Busy Wednesday from Texas to NE

An autumn storm system stretching from Texas and the central Gulf Coast northeastward into the interior Northeast will be big weather maker today. The western half of the U.S. will be quiet. This, and our tropical update, are available at 5 a.m. ET in our daily briefing.

This storm has been making a slow push eastward across the central U.S. this week and will stretch from eastern Texas and the central Gulf Coast northeastward into the eastern Great Lakes and the interior Northeast. The WeatherRadar shows heavy rain along it entire length, with strong and even severe thunderstorms possible across the lower Mississippi Valley into the Tennessee and Ohio valleys.

A few showers and thunderstorms will be possible across Florida while showers make their way into the Mid-Atlantic.

From the high Plains and the Upper Midwest westward to the Pacific Coast, a quiet and sun-filled day is on tap.

It will still feel like summer across large parts of the U.S. The TemperatureRadar shows highs in the 90s along the entire Gulf Coast, throughout the South and Southeast and into the Southwest. A few 100-plus readings will be found across the Desert Southwest. Above-normal 80s will heat the Mid-Atlantic, northern Plains and much of the West.

The coolest temperatures will be found across the southern Rockies and southern Plains. Highs in the 60s and 70s will be the norm.

Major Hurricane Gabrielle, a Category 3 hurricane this morning, is turning to the east and will gradually weaken as it moves across the central Atlantic. It could threaten the eastern Atlantic Azores this weekend. This turn will keep it away from the U.S. Coast. It will still generate some swells and waves along the Atlantic Seaboard.

Two tropical waves moving across the tropical Atlantic will be watched this week. Both of these systems could become tropical depressions this week with the southern one bringing heavy rain to the Greater Antilles over the next several days.

Although it has been quiet recently, the Atlantic Hurricane Season peaks in September, and you will want to be ready. Learn more about how our hurricane alerts work here.