Currently in Boston — June 8th, 2022

After a beautiful Thursday we will increase the clouds and humidity for the tail end of the work week. The drought continues to be firmly in place without any sign of steady rain. This is great for vacationers but not so good for the gardens. After the chance for a couple of light showers Friday with highs around 80, we will enjoy an abundance of sunshine with low humidity for the upcoming weekend. Temperatures both days will be in the 70s to near 80°. The humidity which has not been more than a transient problem this summer will also continue to be low. It does turn warmer early next week.

—Dave Epstein

What you need to know, currently.

NOAA is predicting a less damaging algal bloom for Lake Erie this year. It’s expected to start in mid-July and to measure only 3.5 on the severity index — last year’s bloom was a 6.

“Toxic algae affect not only the health of people and marine ecosystems, but also the health and vibrancy of local and regional economies,” said Nicole LeBoeuf, Assistant Administrator for NOAA’s National Ocean Service.

The forecast is part of NOAA’s Ecological Forecasting Service, which predicts ecological conditions that are often tied to, and exacerbated by, climate change and the weather.

Many scientists believe Harmful Algae Blooms (or HABS) are worsened by climate change, although a 2021 paper in Nature found the situation was slightly more complex. HABS may seem to be increasing because of more intense oversight, but their effects aren’t being felt equally across the globe. HABS were found to be increasing in Central and South America, but decreasing in Australia and New Zealand.

Study co-author Henrik Envoldsen explained that because of the emerging aquaculture industry and increased monitoring due to climate change, we’re noticing more about the world.

“Some [HABs] are more related to the fact that we are everywhere,” Envoldsen told Mongabay. “And then we encounter what has always been there as a part of a natural ecosystem.”