Friday is the 2025 summer solstice, or the first day of astronomical summer.

And, right on time, National Weather Service says the first Alabama heat wave of the 2025 summer is expected to begin this weekend.

And it could last well into next week.

A heat wave, by definition from the weather service, is a period of abnormally hot weather generally lasting more than two days.

Recent rainy days have kept temperatures in check for much of Alabama, but won’t be the case for the most part starting on Saturday.

Forecasters are expecting highs to climb into the 90s starting on Saturday and through next week. Those air temperatures combined with higher humidity levels will make it feel even hotter.

The weather service said the heat index, or “feels like” temperature, could reside in the triple digits next week.

Saturday could begin a period of prolonged heat. It will be the hottest in south Alabama. Here are the forecast high temperatures for Saturday:

Sunday’s expected highs could be a degree or two warmer in some areas:

Then the furnace will be turned up a notch going into next week.

Of course, it’s normally hot in the summer in Alabama, and temperatures in the 90s are commonplace. But this week’s temperatures are expected to be a degree or two higher than typical.

Tuesday through Thursday could be some of the hotter days next week, with some spots getting into the mid-90s, according to weather service forecasts.

Tuesday’s highs:

Wednesday’s forecast is at the top of this post.

Thursday’s highs:

What are some typical highs for this time of year?

Here are the average high temperatures for a few cities on June 25 (next Wednesday) as well as their forecast high temperatures for that day, courtesy of National Weather Service data:

• Birmingham: 90 degrees (forecast high 95)
• Dothan: 92 degrees (forecast high 97)
• Cullman: 87 degrees (forecast high 93)
• Gadsden: 89 degrees (forecast high 96)
• Greenville: 91 degrees (forecast high 96)
• Huntsville: 91 degrees (forecast high 95)
• Mobile: 90 degrees (forecast high 94)
• Montgomery: 93 degrees (forecast high 98)
• Muscle Shoals: 89 degrees (forecast high 94)
• Selma: 92 degrees (forecast high 96)
• Talladega: 89 degrees (forecast high 96)
• Troy: 90 degrees (forecast high 96)
• Tuscaloosa: 90 degrees (forecast high 97)

What about rain to cool things off?

The weather service is forecasting the typical summertime pop-up afternoon showers and storms through next week, but rain chances will be lower than this past week.

So far no severe weather is in the forecast