Alabama 811 | Know What's Below.

A Few Storms Possible Today

| June 23, 2009 @ 6:02 am | 4 Replies

An all new edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player below. You can subscribe to the Weather Xtreme video on iTunes by clicking here.

RIDGE DRIFTING WEST: This is the time of the year when weather changes are usually slow and not especially noticeable, but little things can make a big difference. The core of the 500 mb heat ridge continues to drift to the west, and today the air aloft is a little cooler, and a northerly flow aloft is established. This means the capping inversion that has kept us dry for the past 5 days should be weaker this afternoon, allowing the development of scattered showers and storms during the peak of the daytime heating process. The best coverage, most likely, will be over the eastern half of the state. And, the chance of any one spot getting wet later today is about one in four.

On top of the chance of an afternoon storm, the northerly flow aloft on the eastern periphery of the heat ridge also opens the door for an MCS/decrecho type system moving into Alabama from Kentucky and Tennessee. These things really can’t be forecast far in advance; we pretty much have to see them on radar before we give notice, and they can happen at any hour of the day and night. We actually had a pretty good batch of storms moving south through Tennessee last night, but they fizzled out as they moved into North Alabama a little before midnight.

COMING DAYS: Not much change in this overall pattern through the rest of the week, the weekend, and early next week. Highs mostly in the low 90s with some risk of scattered showers and storms. Very standard June weather for Alabama. Let’s not forget it is supposed to be hot this time of the year. And, again, no way to forecast any potential MCS in advance; we will just have to keep an eye on radars to the north.

VOODOO LAND: Watch the Weather Xtreme video and you will see the dreaded 5900 meter height contour shows up across the southern U.S. toward mid-July; those things can mean some pretty nasty heat under them. The core of the heat stays west of Alabama, thank goodness.

TROPICS: The disturbance in the Southwest Gulf of Mexico remains disorganized, and tropical storm formation is not expected across the Atlantic basin through mid-week. In the eastern Pacific, tropical storm Andres is forecast to become a hurricane later this morning just off the coast of Mexico; it should turn westward later in the week and dissipate over cooler water. See the Weather Xtreme video for the graphics and details.

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WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 30 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. You can even listen here on the blog; look for the player on the top left. We will post show notes on this week’s new episode shortly.

Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 3:30 this afternoon… enjoy the day!

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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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