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Cold March Pattern

| February 28, 2013 @ 3:10 pm

** No afternoon Weather Xtreme video today; I am on the road at Clay Chalkville high school for tonight’s storm alert 2013 program**

This afternoon’s discussion courtesy JB Elliott….

THAT OLD COLD NORTH WIND: If you have been outside today, you have certainly felt the bite in the wind. After all, we are still in winter so we should at least be partially acclimatized to the season. The old weather map this morning still has a wintry look. The latest front, which is bringing in today’s cold air, has pushed all the way into Central Florida. Still another very cold high-pressure system was over Central Canada waiting for its turn to head south.

SNOW TALK: We have mentioned that for several days in a row, both the term snow flurries and snow showers. The possibility still persists and based on the latest information we believe for North Alabama, including places as far south as Birmingham, the better chance of snow showers may be late Friday night and Saturday morning. As we explained yesterday, snow showers are a little heavier than snow flurries. If you see some snow showers during this event, notice the clouds are built up somewhat similar to a build up during a summer shower or thunderstorm. Those clouds can dump a good flurry of snow for a few minutes, but then move on. The wind currents over the weekend dictate that a snow shower will not linger over a certain community very long. We do not see any risk of travel problems or significant accumulations. However, it will be cold enough for a nice snow shower to turn the ground white for a short time. This is especially true on grassy areas and it may happen more so on higher terrain like Mt. Cheaha and the mountain ridges in Northeast Alabama.

LET’S NOT FORGET THE OLE THERMOMETER: It will be active too over the weekend. While we do not foresee a bitter cold wave, we will have some temperatures well below freezing over the weekend, especially during the mornings of Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. On those three days, the lows will be in the mid-20, around 24. It is almost certain that a few places in Northeast Alabama could have 18-20, such as the historic Valley Head, which for many years held the all-time low for the State of Alabama. Any hope for short-sleeve weather? It will be possible early next week as highs reach 55 to 58. I always only wear a short-sleeve shirt when it gets that warm.

USA NOTES: The NOAA snow cover charts for today show that the USA snow cover has retreated a bit to the north. If you go due north of Birmingham, you won’t have a solid snow cover until Middle Indiana and Southern Illinois. The Northeast, including New England, is still heavily covered and there are still big piles of snow in the Central Plains and Midwest after the last huge blizzard. As of late yesterday, the National Guard was still helping stranded motorists in Texas. Strangely enough the warmest spot in the nation yesterday was Harlingen, Texas with 83. It was also 83 in Marathon, Florida. Coldest this morning was 15 below at Gunnison, Colorado and 36 below at Umiat, Alaska. There is now 132 inches of snow on the ground atop Eagle Crest on the west side of Alaska. That is not unusual for them.

STORM ALERT 2013: The final edition is tonight at Clay/Chalkville High School. As usual, the programs start at 6:30, but it is urged that you get there earlier to get a good seat. Good to know that some of the Center Point fire personnel will be attending, including my son Steve, who is with that group. Outside chance I can go, but not certain yet and not sure that my wife will be able to attend.

Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 7 am tomorrow…

extreme video here early tomorrow morning by 7 AM…

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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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