A Cool Change
The Monday morning ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player below, and on iTunes:
COOLER DAYS: Cold air advection kicks in today as temperatures drop to normal levels for early January in Alabama. I don’t have the luxury of having a visible satellite image available as I write this, but it looks like much of the state has already cleared. We will have to watch for more clouds moving in from the northwest today, especially over the northern third of the state, but for now it looks like a mostly sunny and cool day with a high somewhere between 53 and 56 degrees. We will drop into the low 30s tomorrow morning, but our coldest morning will come Wednesday when early morning temperatures will settle into the 24 to 29 degree range.
NEXT RAIN: A big upper trough will form over the western U.S. over the latter half of the week, and moist air will slowly return to Alabama. I guess we can introduce some risk of a shower by Friday afternoon, but the best forcing and moisture will remain well to the west of the state on Friday.
Over the weekend, the big trough out west will slowly move out into the plains states, and moisture will deepen across Alabama. I think we need to mention some chance of rain for Alabama on Saturday and Sunday, but the 06Z GFS really holds off the organized rain until Sunday night and Monday. For now I think it is wise to mention some risk of showers on Saturday and Sunday, but no wash out, and some sunshine is possible between the showers. Highs for the weekend will be mild; mostly in the 60s.
JANUARY 16-18: Now this period sure looks interesting. The 06Z GFS builds a big 1050 mb high over Canada, and it drops south into the U.S. early next week. The leading edge of that cold air moves into Alabama beginning a week from tomorrow, Tuesday January 16. But, the upper flow remains out of the southwest, meaning the cold air will be very shallow. Then, an impulse in the southwest flow aloft brings precipitation into Alabama on Wednesday and Thursday, January 17-18. This sure looks like a setup for freezing rain for the I-20 corridor, with some snow potential for the Tennessee Valley, mainly near the Tennessee border.
There is no way to resolve details and this is in voodoo land, but model consistency has been good. We will have a good idea if this is a go, or no-go, by the end of this week. Stay tuned.
SKYWATCHERS: We have had some great information shared by the team of ABC 33/40 Skywatchers during the last two severe weather threats in Alabama… if you are interested in joining us by instant message conference during active weather then read about the program here.
WEATHERPARTY: Get the latest weather related news over on our sister site, weatherparty.com. Be sure and register and you can submit links and vote on them as well.
I will have the next Weather Xtreme video posted by 3:30 this afternoon… enjoy the day!
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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.Subscribe
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