Arctic Blast Arrives Tonight

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GETTING BACK TO NORMAL, SLOWLY: There is a huge variation in travel conditions across Alabama this morning… icy travel is still a big problem, of course, where the big snowpack is down. Along I-20, Anniston is at 32 with some icing issues on bridges. In Birmingham, Trussville is at 31 with ice issues, but the downtown Birmingham area is mostly wet with the Birmingham Airport reporting 33 degrees at 5:00. Tuscaloosa is just fine; they have managed to stay above freezing all night with the temperature holding in the mid 30s.

We will rise into the upper 30s today, and travel conditions will improve statewide this afternoon as we finally see life getting back to normal.

TURNING COLDER: Yep, it has been cold for the past few days, but even cold air blows in here tonight. The good news is that sinking air will crush the clouds away, and we will be generally sunny tomorrow through Friday, but the Deep South will be in the deep freeze. We are projecting highs only around the freezing mark tomorrow and Thursday, and lows will drop into the mid teens. The coldest morning will come early Friday with a clear sky and light wind; a great morning for radiational cooling. While most places will be in the 12-17 degree range, the colder valleys where snow is still on the ground will most likely wind up in the single digits.

We finally begin a warming trend Friday afternoon when the high will reach the low 40s.

WEEKEND PREVIEW: The warming trend continues, with a high around 50 on Saturday, followed by mid 50s Sunday. Saturday will feature a good supply of sunshine, but clouds will begin to increase on Sunday, with some risk of showers late in the day or Sunday night as moisture levels increase.

NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND: Monday will be a rather mild and breezy day (we might even touch the 60 degree mark) with a few showers possible, but both the GFS and the ECMWF now project the main chance of showers and thunderstorms on Tuesday with a strong cold front. This front represents the leading edge of much colder air, and that will blow into Alabama by Wednesday of next week. This will be very cold, and we might have a hard time getting above freezing Wednesday with lows down toward 10 degrees by Thursday of next week, but this look like the last cold shot in the series as the NAO heads toward neutral territory, meaning the last 10 days of January could very well feature above average temperatures for a change.

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Tags: cold

Category: Alabama's Weather