Austin weather: Record-breaking heat on the way

Austin weather: Heat advisories issued

It's going to very hot the next few days in Central Texas. Leslie London has all the details in her full forecast.

AUSTIN, Texas - The heat wave for Central Texas has kicked in, and the heat wave will be the topic of conversation for some time.

This could end up being historic for this time of year.

For Tuesday, afternoon highs are going to skyrocket to dangerous levels. The National Weather Service has much of Central Texas under a heat advisory from 1 p.m. today through at least 9 p.m. on Wednesday night.

A heat advisory is issued when the heat index reaches at least 108 degrees in the forecast, or if the air temperature is at least 103 degrees.

For Wednesday, those forecast highs are trending hotter. The heat advisory may be upgraded to an excessive heat warning.

The hottest air in America is right here in the Lone Star State, and there is no rain coming to the rescue.

Temperatures hit the 100-degree mark around 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

That tops the previous record high for May 13, which was set at Camp Mabry in 1925.

It was 98 degrees that day.

Air Quality

The mold count is still high, the grass and pecan pollen are at moderate levels, but the pine and hackberry pollen is low.

Tuesday has been declared an Ozone Action Day for the Austin Metro. With the sunshine, the heat and a light breeze early on, we’ll have more ground-level ozone out there.

If you have respiratory issues and heart disease, you may want to limit afternoon activities, because the air quality is not going to be the best.