Big Cool-Down This Weekend; Sandy Heads For East Coast

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BUSY WEATHER DAYS: I always encourage people to watch the Weather Xtreme video we produce, especially on days like this when the graphics can tell a better story. Weather will be the big national weather headline for a while, and we have a major weather change here.

COLD AIR GETTING VERY CLOSE: The cold front is actually nearing the northwest corner of Alabama this morning; it will pass through our part of the state later today. You will know when the front passes, as northwest winds will begin to pick up and temperatures will begin to level off and then fall. A few showers continue in the cool air behind the front along the I-55 corridor, and we even note some lightning showing up over East Arkansas due to the very steep lapse rates.

Precipitable water values are very low around here, so much of the rain you see to the west will just vanish, but we will hold on to some risk of showers over North Alabama today and early tonight. They will just be isolated, and light. Many places around here won’t see a drop of rain.

WINDY AND CHILLY WEEKEND: Strong north winds will develop across the state over the weekend as the gradient tightens up between the cold high to the northwest, and Sandy to the east. Winds will average 15-25 mph, with gusts to 35 mph at times…. the high tomorrow will be in the low 60s, and I doubt if we get out of the 50s Sunday. Blustery is the word.

FREEZE/FROST POTENTIAL NEXT WEEK: The GFS hints that Tuesday morning will be the coldest morning for us, with lows in the 30 to 35 degree range. If the wind dies down, frost will be widespread, and many places will have their first freeze of the season. There is a chance Wednesday morning could be just as cold. Needless to say it will be a brisk and rather chilly night for the trick or treaters Wednesday night. The week will be dry, and the warming trend late in the week with just be gradual.

EYES ON SANDY: Clearly Hurricane Sandy is going through a structure change this morning. Sustained winds are down to near 80 mph as the circulation becomes larger. Most models tend to agree that Sandy will remain a warm core tropical system all the way to the coast, and there is also a chance that this could grow stronger by landfall early next week. But, the important point is that the wind field will be huge, and this will impact a very large part of the East Coast of the U.S.

Model agreement is pretty good. The 06Z GFS just in, and the ECMWF and NOGAPS all aim Sandy toward the Delmarva peninsula, or the southern New Jersey shore, either Monday night or very early Tuesday.

IMPACT: Sandy will impact millions of people…

*Coastal flooding will be pretty serious along and north of the landfall center with an unrelenting onshore flow and storm surge. If local emergency management officials tell you to evacuate, you simply need to leave and obey those orders.

*Winds will blow down many trees and power lines, and power outages will be widespread from North Carolina to Maine. Some could be without power for over a week.

*Rain amounts will be in the 5 to 10 inch range, so inland flooding is likely as well.

*Airport delays will be severe, and air travel to airports like DCA IAD BWI PHL JFK LGA EWK BOS will very difficult, if not impossible at times Monday and Tuesday. Keep in mind this will also lead to delays in other parts of the nation.

*In the very cold air west of the center of Sandy, heavy snow will develop. Seems like West Virginia will be the bullseye for big snows, where they could be measuring snow in terms of feet instead of inches. Heavy snow is also possible up into western Pennsylvania, and into parts of Ohio, Virginia, and North Carolina. Power outages are possible where the heaviest snow falls since many leaves are still on trees.

Watch this WeatherBrains special (this was our live show from last night) for much more on Sandy and the impacts to be expected…

FOOTBALL WEATHER: The coldest air will be over Northwest Alabama tonight, and some stadiums in places like Hamilton, Haleyville, Russellville, and the Shoals will see temperatures mostly in the 50s with a north breeze of 7-14 mph. As you go south, stadiums around Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, and Anniston should see temperatures mostly in the 60s for the first half, with 50s likely during the second half. We can’t rule out a shower or two somewhere, but most stadiums will be dry.

The Magic City Classic is tomorrow afternoon at Legion Field (Alabama State vs Alabama A&M; 2:30 p.m. kickoff); the weather will be windy and very cool with a kickoff temperature near 60 degrees, falling into the 50s during the second half. Strong north winds will average 12-25 mph, with potential for gusts over 30 mph.

Tomorrow night Alabama will host the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Bryant-Denny Stadium (7:30 p.m. kickoff). The sky will be mostly fair, but the weather will be windy and cold. Temperatures will drop from near 54 degrees at kickoff into the 40s during the second half. North winds of 10-20 mph will make it feel colder. Auburn will host Texas A&M at Jordan-Hare Stadium tomorrow night (6:00 p.m. kickoff); pretty much the same story as Tuscaloosa. Mostly fair with temperatures falling from near 58 at kickoff into the 40s by the fourth quarter. Strong north winds will average 10-20 mph, with potential for higher gusts.

WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 90 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.

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I have stops today at the A.G. Gaston Boys Club in Birmingham… and at Trinity Medical Center… next full discussion comes by 4:00 this afternoon… enjoy the day!

Tags: colder

Category: Alabama's Weather