Alabama 811 | Know What's Below.

Summer-Like Pattern Sets Up

| March 13, 2012 @ 5:24 am

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MARCH, OR JUNE? The primary jet stream across North America is moving well to the north, and that will set up a warm, humid pattern for Alabama and the Deep South that resembles June instead of March.

THIS MORNING: We have a few showers on radar this morning over East Alabama from near Heflin down to Dadeville as I write this in the pre-dawn hours; those should fade away soon. We project a high in the upper 70s later today… with more clouds than sun. A few more showers could break out this afternoon or this evening, but with little in the day of dynamic forcing, those showers will be widely spaced, and most communities won’t get wet.

REST OF THE WEEK AND THE WEEKEND: Things just won’t change much as an uneventful weather pattern sets up for the Deep South. Warm is the word… daily highs will be in the low 80s; very close to record highs for mid-March. The GFS is printing a high of 83 both tomorrow and Thursday, which is just one degree shy of the record high for both days, and 17 degrees above the average high of 66. Each day will feature a mix of sun and clouds, and due to the low level moisture, a shower or storm is possible each day, but they will be widely spaced, and mostly during the afternoon and evening hours.

By Sunday and early next week, the upper pattern amplifies, with a huge upper trough out west, where the weather will be cold and unsettled, and a downstream upper ridge over the eastern U.S., which will keep us very warm, and mostly dry.

LONG RANGE: No sign of the late season cold snap so many of us expected through the rest of March based on medium range models. Temperatures stay above average, with rain below average around here. See the Weather Xtreme video for details.

AT THE BEACH: For today, expect about 5 to 7 hours of sunshine along the coast from Panama City west to Gulf Shores, with a few widely scattered showers or thunderstorms. Then, tomorrow through Sunday, the weather simply looks beautiful with mostly sunny days and fair nights. Highs on the immediate coast will be near 70 (due to the cooler ocean water), with mid to upper 70s inland. The sea water temperature at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab was a cool 64 degrees last night.

NINETEEN YEARS AGO: The great Blizzard of 1993 was winding down. Birmingham had an official snow total of 13 inches (based on data at the Airport), but some of the suburbs had almost two feet of snow. Power outages were major and widespread, and much of the state was totally shut down until early the following week. It was our greatest snow on record, and it came in mid-March.

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I will be doing a weather program for the school kids over at Wedowee, in Raldolph County, this morning. Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 3:30 or so this afternoon. Enjoy the day!

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Category: Alabama's Weather

About the Author ()

James Spann is one of the most recognized and trusted television meteorologists in the industry. He holds the AMS CCM designation and television seals from the AMS and NWA. He is a past winner of the Broadcast Meteorologist of the Year from both professional organizations.

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