Monday was the start of what weather forecasters call "meteorological summer" in Lincoln, because June, July and August are the three warmest months of the year.
And right on cue, temperatures are forecast to soar.
The National Weather Service is predicting highs in the upper 80s to mid-90s in Lincoln for at least the next week, bringing us our first heat wave of the year.
Tuesday is forecast to be the hottest day, with a high near 95 degrees, and the humidity could make it feel even hotter.
"The combination of heat and humidity will result in heat indices in the mid- to upper 90s on Tuesday afternoon into early evening," the Weather Service said in a hazardous weather bulletin.
The heat and humidity also could lead to some severe storms.
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"A warm and humid air mass will become established across the region, supporting periodic thunderstorm chances from Tuesday afternoon into the weekend," the Weather Service said.
Chances are highest Tuesday in northeast Nebraska, while the threat is higher in southeast Nebraska on Wednesday.
The heat will likely be a shock after a cooler-than-normal May. After starting off with a high of 91 degrees May 1, it was almost four weeks before the high hit 80 again. Only four days in May were above 80, and only 10 were above 75, as the average temperature for the month wound up more than 2 degrees lower than normal.
May also was a bit wetter than normal, totaling 5.09 inches of rain, which was 0.8 inches above normal for the month.
That helped cut into a significant rain deficit after the combined February, March and April rainfall was nearly 3 inches below normal.
On May 19, the U.S Drought Monitor produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln showed all of Lancaster County was considered "abnormally dry." On May 26, however, after nearly 4 inches of rain fell in a six-day period, all but the very northern tip of the county returned to normal.
For the year, Lincoln still remains nearly 1.3 inches below normal for precipitation.