5 things to know about Austin weather this week: what rain we got, what we need, what to expect

After weeks of broiling daytime temperatures, a cold front this weekend brought milder temperatures and ended a two-week, two-day stretch of rain-free days in Austin.

The good news: More rain is coming. The bad news, the National Weather Service said in a bulletin Monday, "Rainfall amounts through the short term will be beneficial, but not drought-busting."

Here are five things to know about this week's weather in Austin:

1. We hit 100 degrees over the weekend

Congratulations, Austin! We finally recorded our first triple-digit temperature reading this year on Saturday, when it was 100 degrees at Camp Mabry, site of the city's main weather station. The reading broke the previous heat record for May 21, which was 99, set in 1939.

Having 100-degree weather this early in the year is actually rare for Austin. The last time we had a 100-degree day in May was in 2011, when we had three such days that month — before having 87 more that year.

If you look at Austin’s weather records, which go back to the late 1890s, only seven other years have had triple-digit temperatures in May — and four of those years were in the 21st century, when the effects of climate change have become more apparent.

Before Saturday, Austin had gotten temperatures as high as 99 on May 16 and 17, which matched or broke heat records for those days.

The 100-degree mark can be psychologically significant, but meteorologists are more worried about the physical dangers of those temperatures, such as dehydration, heat stroke and other heat-related illnesses.

Health risks: Use hydration, common sense to protect yourself from Central Texas heat

2. We got a substantial dose of rain this weekend, too

Saturday not only brought record heat but also the first substantial rainfall we've seen in weeks. According to rain gauges monitored by the Lower Colorado River Authority, some of the highest rainfall totals in the Austin area from Saturday night were:

• 2 inches of rain at Cortana Shores on Lake Austin in central Travis County.

• 1.83 inches in Jollyville, near the Williamson-Travis county line northwest of Austin.

• 1.64 inches at Bull Creek near Loop 360 in West Austin.

• 1 inch near Lakeway in western Travis County.

• 0.94 of an inch at Barton Creek near Texas 71 in Oak Hill in Southwest Austin.

3. We're going to need a lot more rain

For all the moisture the Interstate 35 corridor got, the area remains short of its normal rainfall totals.

May is, on average, Austin's rainiest month of the year, with the gauges at Camp Mabry normally recording 5.04 inches for the 31 days. With just a week left in the month, the city has recorded only 0.84 of an inch there in May — and about 38% of that total fell Saturday night.

Austin's normal rainfall total for the year so far at Camp Mabry would be 13.4 inches. The cumulative actual total is only 8.66 inches.

4. More rain is coming, but so are storm threats

The Austin weather forecast for Tuesday and the rest of the workweek calls for more rain but also possibly damaging high winds.

University of Texas meteorology lecturer and longtime forecaster Troy Kimmel told readers of his weather newsletter Monday that "rainfall amounts, over the next 48 hours, will average between 2 and 3 inches with isolated heavier totals possible."

"For the most part, this will be a very beneficial rainfall," Kimmel said. "While ongoing drought conditions will tend to keep the flash flood threat on the lower end of the scale, we still might see some flash flooding develop around heavier thunderstorms especially in urban areas and in normally flash flood-prone areas."

More: Austin continues to flirt with 100-degree weather — but without rain, bigger worries loom

Morning storms and a 70% chance of rain could make Tuesday the soggiest day of the week. South winds of 5 to 15 mph could have gusts as strong 25 mph. Rainfall amounts of up to three-quarters of an inch are possible and should help limit daytime temperatures to the low 80s, the weather service said Monday.

"As we saw on Saturday night, please keep in mind the prolific (and dangerous) lightning that these spring thunderstorms can produce," Kimmel said. "This threat will be on-and-off as these waves of thunderstorms move over our area ... into the first half of the day Wednesday."

Wednesday has a 60% chance of rain and could see storms off and on throughout the day, with high temperatures staying below 76 degrees as balmy south winds turn northerly, the weather service said.

5. Outlook calls for hotter, drier days ahead

Sunshine is set to return Thursday, along with temperatures climbing to the mid-80s in Austin. Then rain is absent once again from the extended forecast into next week, and daytime temperatures return to the 90s by Friday.

La Niña, the cooling of tropical waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean that can influence weather in North America, will linger through spring and into early summer, forecasters have said. Such events typically lead to warmer and drier than normal conditions in Central Texas.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: 5 things to know about Austin weather: Rain, sun, wind, heat, forecast