Midday Nowcast: Mowing The Lawn Ain’t No Fun In This Heat

Across Central Alabama at this hour, a few scattered showers and storms are showing up on radar across the area. These are just your normal summertime variety out there that form with the heating of the day. Otherwise, skies are partly to mostly clear across the area. Just use common sense out there as heat indicies will be at or just over 100 today. I usually love mowing the lawn, but the heat and humidity made it not so fun today.

Most communities in the area are already up into the 80s at this time. Here is a list of temperature observations from across the state:

Birmingham 84
Tuscaloosa 83
Gadsden 84
Anniston 85
Cullman 83
Decatur 83
Huntsville 85
Muscle Shoals 83
Alexander City 82
Montgomery 86

REST OF TODAY: Another typical summertime day in July for Central Alabama. Partly to mostly sunny skies and hot conditions expected today with a risk of scattered afternoon showers and thunderstorms. Odds for any one place getting rain is about 1 in 4. Afternoon highs will be in the mid 90s for most of the area, with a few places reaching the upper 90s. Heat indices will be at or just above 100, so please use common sense when outside. Overnight lows will be in the 70s for the most part.

CODE YELLOW AIR QUALITY: The Air Quality Index for the Birmingham Metropolitan Area will be in the “Code Yellow” for both ozone and particulate matter 2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion.

TODAY’S CLIMATOLOGY FOR BIRMINGHAM: The normal high for July 18th is 91, while the normal low is 70. The record high for today was set back in 1995 at 99. The record low was set back in 1967 at 60.

TUESDAY’S WEATHER: A “carbon copy forecast” for tomorrow. Partly to mostly sunny skies with the risk of scattered afternoon showers and thunderstorms. Afternoon highs in the mid 90s, and the odds of any one spot getting rain is 1 in 4. Now there is a possibility that we could have a MCS form off to our northwest and move into the state tomorrow evening. If that happens, storms could be on the strong side with a few reaching severe status. As of right now, the SPC does not have anyone in Central Alabama defined in a severe risk. We’ll update this as we get closer to tomorrow.

HEADED TO THE BEACH: About 8 to 10 hours of sunshine daily on the Gulf Coast this week and over the coming weekend from Gulf Shores over to Panama City Beach, with an occasional passing thunderstorm. Highs 87-90 on the immediate coast, with mid 90s inland. See a very detailed Gulf Coast forecast here.

THE TROPICS: For the North Atlantic, Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico, activity is quiet for now with no new tropical cyclone development expected during the next five days.

ON THIS DAY IN 1986: During the late afternoon in the northern suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota, one of the most photogenic tornadoes touched down. Unlike most tornadoes, this twister stayed visible to tens of thousands of people for at least thirty minutes. Live footage of the tornado was even captured by the KARE-TV helicopter crew. Winds of up to 157 MPH caused approximately 650 thousand dollars worth of damage.

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Category: Alabama's Weather