Summer-Like Weather Rolls Along
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ON THE MAPS: A strong upper ridge (5880 meters at 500 mb) remains parked over the Deep South, meaning more very warm weather in the days ahead for Alabama. Temperatures today won’t change much from yesterday, so most places will see a high between 87 and 90 degrees. We actually might see a few showers on radar this afternoon, but they will be widely spaced, and most places won’t get wet. The specific chance of any one neighborhood getting wet is only about one in eight.
REST OF THE WEEK: Basically warm and mostly dry tomorrow through Friday. But, we do note the 06Z GFS shows and the 00Z NAM are now showing an increase in tropical moisture from the south, and are printing a higher chance of rain on Thursday. If this trend continues on the 12Z runs, we will need to hit the chance of rain a little harder on Thursday, but for now we will lean with a drier solution.
THE WEEKEND: Persistence is the best forecast. The ridge actually shifts west of Alabama, and will be centered over Texas, putting us in a light northwest flow aloft. We might see a little ripple of energy from time to time that could kick off a shower or storm in spots, but still this is not a pattern to suggest any widespread rain. We will just mention the standard risk of “widely scattered afternoon showers” both days with highs generally in the upper 80s.
AARON’S DREAM WEEKEND: Looks like the high will be around 88 degrees Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at the Talladega Superspeedway with a decent amount of sunshine each day. The chance of a shower at the track Friday, Saturday and Sunday is only in the 10 percent category. Bring the sunscreen.
AT THE BEACH: The sky will be mostly sunny along the Gulf Coast today from Panama City west to Gulf Shores with a high in the low to mid 80s. Showers and storms are possible tomorrow and Thursday as a plume of tropical moisture moves in from the southeast, but then expect lots of sunshine Friday through Sunday. The sea water temperature at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab last night was up to 79 degrees.
NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND: The GFS remains very consistent in the idea of the ridge pattern breaking down with cooler temperatures around here May 10-16… see the Weather Xtreme video for more details. The bad news is that we still see no serious rain event for the state for the next 15 days. And, we note rain deficits are growing across Alabama. At Birmingham, the total since January 1 is 14.82?, and the deficiency is 4.14?.
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I will be up in Winston County today doing a weather program at Lynn Elementary School… look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 3:30 this afternoon. Enjoy the day!
Category: Alabama's Weather
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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.Subscribe
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