“Cool” July Day

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NO HEAT ISSUES TODAY: How about these 3:00 temperatures…

Birmingham 83
Shelby County Airport 82
Gadsden 84
Anniston 86
Tuscaloosa 89

Of course, there is no real cool air involved here, just the lack of sunshine.

ON THE RADAR: Ahhh, the mystery of summer thunderstorms. Most synoptic and mesoscale models suggested a high coverage of showers and storms today, and quite frankly there just isn’t too much on radar this afternoon. Having said that, there is a good band of showers and storms from near Snead to Gadsden to Weiss Lake over Northeast Alabama as I write this. The western half of the state is generally dry.

The cool temperatures have hampered thunderstorm development today; the window is still open for shower and thunderstorm development through tonight as a surface boundary works in from the north.

REST OF THE WEEK: The GFS and the NAM continue to suggest that drier air will ease into the northern third of the state tomorrow… if indeed this is correct the most numerous shower and thunderstorm activity will be along and south of I-20. Heat levels rise with a high in the low 90s in most spots thanks to the increased amount of sunshine.

That boundary will move north Wednesday, and for now I don’t see much reason to depart from the standard summer forecast over the latter half of the week, with partly sunny days and the risk of a passing shower or storm each afternoon in scattered spots. Highs will be mostly in the low 90s, with mid 90s in a few places. And, with very high PW (precipitable water) values in place, a late night or morning shower can’t be ruled out.

THE WEEKEND: Not much change. Moist tropical air stays in place, but not much of a trigger evident at this point other than the daytime heating process. So, look for a mix of sun and clouds Saturday and Sunday with scattered, mostly afternoon and evening showers and storms. Highs will be in the low 90s again, about where we should be for late July in Alabama.

And, we will just roll with a persistence forecast for the first part of next week. The really nasty heat remains west of Alabama under the 5940 meter 500 mb ridge centered over Texas, Oklahoma, and the Southern Plains.

TROPICS: All remains quiet and tropical storm formation across the Atlantic basin is not expected through the week.

AT THE BEACH: The weather will be a bit unsettled along the coast… about 3 to 5 hours of sunshine each day through Friday from Panama City west to Gulf Shores with scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms. Highs along the immediate coast will be in the upper 80s. A check of the sea water temperature at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab this afternoon shows 88 degrees.

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Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 7:00 a.m. tomorrow….

Tags: muggy

Category: Alabama's Weather