Alabama 811 | Know What's Below.

Mild Days, Chilly Nights

| March 20, 2008 @ 6:06 am | 11 Replies

An all new edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player below, and on iTunes…

WELCOME SPRING: The vernal equinox was this morning at 12:48 a.m. CDT… that was when the sun was directly over the equator on the journey north. We have approximately 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness today as the daylight continues to increase on a daily basis. The Bradford pear trees have been in bloom for well over a week, and many dogwoods are now blooming. A pleasant early spring weather pattern will continue through Saturday, with mostly sunny mild days and clear chilly nights. Look for a high in the mid 60s today, with low 70s likely tomorrow.

EASTER WEEKEND AND BEYOND: After a dry and pleasant day Saturday, we deal with model madness for Sunday and the first part of next week. One way or another, the daytime hours on Sunday should be dry here with a high close to 60 degrees. There should be some increase in cloud cover during the afternoon, and a few showers could reach Alabama Sunday night.

Using an ensemble approach, the idea of a major eastern U.S. snow event is on the table for early next week, with a deepening surface low running from the Northeast Gulf of Mexico, then moving northeast, parallel to the Atlantic coast. This would bring a threat of a major late March snow from Richmond, Virginia all the way to Boston, with potential for one foot of snow for some of the major eastern cities. Maybe even a few snow flakes for North Alabama late Sunday night or Monday.

But, the 00Z and 06Z GFS runs have just about completely lost this storm, suggesting no snow for the eastern U.S.

The guys at HPC came up with some good analogs on this kind of setup, looking at these years: 1942 1958 1964 1971 1974 and 1983.

Bottom line is that there is no need to get excited about anything just yet… just understand the idea is on the table.

LONG RANGE: The GFS continues to suggest the next big rain event for Alabama (assuming nothing happens Monday) will come one week from today, Thursday March 27. Could be some active thunderstorms with that one. We also note the summer look showing up around April 4 with the westerlies shifting well to the north of here. That might bring us some of the warmest weather so far this year if that happens to be the right idea.

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.

I will be down in Tuscaloosa this morning speaking to the senior adults at Alberta Baptist Church… look for the next video here by 3:30 or so this afternoon when I am back in the office. Have a great 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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