Brighter/Drier Weather Tomorrow

RADAR CHECK: Most of the light rain is now south of I-59, and the rain will continue to end from northwest to southeast during the next few hours.

The sky becomes mostly fair tonight in the wake of the short wave that produced the light rain today.

REST OF THE WEEK: Tomorrow looks mostly dry; any showers should be confined to the Georgia border, and mainly south of Phenix City. With a better supply of sunshine, we should rise into the low to mid 80s tomorrow afternoon.

For Wednesday and Thursday, we are getting a bit of conflicting model data; the GFS (Global Forecast System) looks pretty dry with highs in the 82-85 degree range, but the NAM brings enough moisture back in here for scattered showers both days. For now we will lean toward the drier GFS in the forecast, and make adjustments tomorrow as needed.

We will need to mention the risk of a few scattered showers Friday, with the higher probabilities over East Alabama. The high Friday will be in the upper 70s because of higher cloud cover.

THE WEEKEND: Global models have trended a little wetter in the latest runs; looks like we will need to mention the risk of showers Saturday and Sunday… but understand it won’t rain the entire weekend, and the sun should be out at times. Just be ready for an occasional shower both days. Highs will be close to 80 degrees.

NEXT WEEK: Enough moisture remains in place for a few scattered showers each day for the first half of the week, and both the GFS and ECMWF (Euro) hint at potential for some tropical mischief in the Gulf of Mexico. See the Weather Xtreme video for maps, graphics, and more details.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: Alabama will host ULM (University of Louisiana at Monroe) Saturday at 3:00 at Bryant Denny Stadium; there will be cloudy periods during the game, and a passing shower is not out of the question. Temperatures will fall from near 81 degrees at kickoff, into the mid 70s by the fourth quarter. Mississippi State will visit Auburn at Jordan Hare Stadium Saturday evening (6:30 kickoff)… the sky will be mostly cloudy with one or two showers possible during the game. Temperature at kickoff near 75 degrees, falling to near 70 by the final whistle.

TROPICS: Tropical Storm Ida is packing sustained winds of 50 mph in the Central Atlantic; it won’t much much in coming days, but is expected to move north, and then northeast in 5-6 days. No threat to land, but it could become a category one hurricane briefly late this week.

AT THE BEACH: Expect about 6 to 8 hours of sun each day along the coast from Panama City Beach west to Gulf Shores through the weekend with widely scattered showers or thunderstorms. Highs will be in the 80s, and sea water temperatures are mostly in the low 80s. See the complete Gulf Coast 7 Day Planner here. The Gulf Coast Beach Forecast is presented by Gulf Shores Plantation by Mandoki Hospitality Vacation Rentals. Escape to Gulf Shores Plantation where memories last a lifetime.

WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 90 minute netcast anytime on the web, or on iTunes. This is the show all about weather featuring many familiar voices, including our meteorologists here at ABC 33/40. We will produce this week’s show tonight at 8:30 CT… you can watch it on “James Spann 24/7” on cable systems around the state, or on the web here.

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I had a great time today visiting with the 3rd and 4th graders at Hayden Elementary School in Blount County… be looking for them on the Pepsi KIDCAM today at 5:00 on ABC 33/40 News! The next Weather Xtreme video will be posted here by 7:00 a.m. tomorrow…

Tags: ANC, clearing

Category: Alabama's Weather