Warm And Dry Tomorrow; Storms Late Sunday?
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THIS AFTERNOON: What was once a large area of rain over the Tennessee Valley is now just a few scattered showers, and those are dissipating quickly. We have another huge temperature spread across the state this afternoon; a 20 degree swing from 65 in Huntsville to 85 at Montgomery at 2:00. The sky is mostly sunny south of the surface boundary, and that front will moving north tonight. Most of the state should be rain-free tonight.
OUR WEEKEND: An upper ridge should mean warm and dry weather for our state tomorrow; with a partly sunny temperatures should rise into the low 80s tomorrow afternoon.
While we enjoy a calm Saturday, we will be watching events with great interest over the Great Plains, where a significant severe weather outbreak is possible from near Dallas/Fort Worth to Milwaukee and Chicago. The greatest severe weather threat is over the eastern half of Oklahoma, West and North Missouri, East Kansas, and the southern part of Iowa.
The system responsible for this will move east, and bring a chance of showers and storms to Alabama late Sunday, Sunday night, and Monday morning. For now it looks like the main threat of wet weather will come from about 4:00 p.m. Sunday through 12:00 noon Monday. The 12Z GFS is a little more aggressive with the strength of the system, and SPC maintains a “slight risk” of severe weather for the northwest corner of Alabama Sunday evening. We will keep an eye on radar trends as the storms approach, but a widespread, major severe weather event is not likely.
Rain amounts should 1/2 inch or less for most North Alabama communities with this weather feature.
NEXT WEEK: Tuesday looks dry and pleasant, but another dynamic system will impact the state by Thursday. The 12Z GFS shows the main surface low south of Alabama, meaning a big rain event with little severe weather risk. But, we have seen other runs that do show some severe weather potential for the state. We will watch for trends in coming days.
FOOTBALL WEATHER: Most stadiums will be rain-free tonight, with temperatures in the 70s degrees, dropping into the 60s by the fourth quarter. The chance of any one stadium getting wet is only 10 percent.
The big issue comes tomorrow when Alabama plays Missouri in Columbia. The game kicks off at 2:30, and during the game thunderstorms are likely, and those storms could be strong to severe with potential for frequent lightning, high winds, and hail. Forecast wind profiles even suggest there will be a tornado threat. So, fans traveling to this game need to take the rain gear, be ready for delays, and be sure you have a good way of hearing severe weather warnings if they are needed. I don’t think the game will be cancelled, but a delay is a very real possibility.
Auburn travels to Oxford to play Ole Miss (11:00 a.m. kickoff); the sky will be partly to mostly sunny during the game with temperatures rising from near 80 at kickoff into the mid 80 by the final whistle. Bring the sun screen.
UAB will play at Houston tomorrow (11:00 a.m. kickoff); this game will also be played with warm and dry conditions. A sunny sky; temperatures rising from the low 80s at kickoff into the upper 80s by the fourth quarter.
NATIONAL SHRIMP FESTIVAL: One of the biggest events of the year is underway at Gulf Shores… the weather will be fine through Sunday with mostly sunny warm days and fair pleasant nights. Highs will be in the 81-84 degree range. See the crowds on our Gulf Shores SKYCAM here.
TROPICS: Tropical Depression 16 is now Tropical Storm Patty… east of the Bahamas, but it is expected to dissipate tonight or early tomorrow due to strong winds aloft. Another system moving toward the Windward Islands should become a tropical depression soon, but it will turn north and not impact the U.S. See the Weather Xtreme video for all the details.
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I had a great time today visiting with the senior adults at Mountain Brook Baptist Church…. look for my next Weather Xtreme video here by 7:00 a.m. Monday… Brian Peters will have the video updates tomorrow and Sunday. Enjoy the weekend!
Category: Alabama's Weather
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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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