Houston Summer Rain Update

The Houston Chronicle today, Sept 1, 2007, reports that Houston has wettest summer since at least 1942. We've had 20 inches of rain in July and August, compared to only 7 inches in a normal year. Further, it has not been this wet without a tropical weather system ever. In 1900, 1915 and 1942 Houston has had greater rainfall, but all 3 years involved at least on major hurricane. According to the article,

The absence of a high-pressure system, normally a fixture during sultry Texas summers, has allowed this warm moist air to lift into the upper atmosphere, where it has found the right ingredients to spark thunderstorms.