Interesting Weather along the Beaches

The weather is certainly terrific today, not just here in Central Alabama, but also along the beaches of the northern Gulf Coast. A lot of springbreakers are enjoying the sand and sun, with even some brave souls getting in the water which is still a frigid 61 degrees. Looking at the sky cam shot from Pensacola, it appears to be a great day at the beach, but we need to take a closer look at a few things.

As we look at the latest satellite image for the region, we are seeing a mix of sun and clouds for most areas. As a meteorologist looking at this image, my eyes were drawn to the very insignificant gray area along the Alabama Coast, I have circled the area in green. I said to myself, that looks like there could be some fog or low clouds along the Alabama coast,  and that could really ruin someone’s day at the beach if that is the case. I started pulling up the sky cams along the Gulf Coast, and sure enough, it remains very cloudy and foggy along the beaches of south Baldwin County.

Here is the sky cam from Gulf Shore early this afternoon. It is quite a different image compared to what we are seeing on the Pensacola sky cam. Such a short distance between these two locations, but certainly a major difference in the weather. The low clouds and fog are just affecting Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, while the rest of the northern Gulf Coast is severe clear. Compared to the rest of the area, it is not a great day at the beach. Hopefully heading through the rest of the afternoon, the low clouds and fog will move out and allow for some rays of sun to make it through.

Category: Alabama's Weather