Tulsa - Records continue to fall as a Summer heatwave maintains its grip on Oklahoma and Texas.

On Thursday parts of Northwestern Oklahoma climbed above 110 degrees with Buffalo, OK setting an all-time record of 115 degrees and it could get even hotter on Friday.

A strong upper-level high pressure system continues to sit over the Southern Plains and Southwest states keeping things dry and very hot.

Here's how it works. The suns rays heat the ground which in turn heats the air above it.  Several factors though can aid in heating the air further.  A high pressure system aloft is one such factor.  High Pressure aloft(15,000 to 18,000 feet above the ground) is an area of subsiding (falling) air.

This subsiding air compresses the air below it which acts as a heating agent. Compress a gas and it warms.
 
This subsiding of air can also prevent clouds from developing. Clouds that would otherwise help to block some of the suns rays.

The stronger the high pressure the more the air subsides and the more warming takes place.  The current high pressure is fairly strong for this time of year.

With more sunshine reaching the ground and the air above warming due to the high pressure all the ingredients are there for hot weather. 

Toss in dry grounds, winds and the flat treeless terrain of Northwest Oklahoma and you have the makings of extreme heat.

In fact,  11am temperatures in northwest Oklahoma were already above 105 degrees. 

The hottest temperature ever recorded in Oklahoma was on June 27, 1994 in Tipton, Oklahoma where it reached 120 degrees.

Temperatures over the weekend are forecast to stay above the century mark statewide with only a slight chance each day of seeing a shower or storm.

A heat advisory is in effect for much of the area on Friday, with an Excessive Heat Watch then in effect from Saturday through Wednesday.

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