Wet At Times Today; Thunder Possible
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WET TUESDAY: While the radar isn’t showing much across Alabama early this morning other than a few sprinkles, we expect periods of rain and the potential for a thunderstorm during the midday and afternoon hours. Rain won’t be too heavy; the NAM is printing only 0.21″ for Birmingham, while the GFS is at 0.22″.
It is interesting to note that SPC has introduced a very small “slight risk” of severe today along the I-85 corridor from Auburn-Opelika to Atlanta. High resolution mesoscale models are more aggressive with instability today, but most of the real surface based instability remains along and south of U.S. 80/I-85 (Demopolis to Selma to Montgomery to Opelika to Atlanta). There is a fair amount of low level shear, so we will keep an eye on radar trends, but for the northern half of Alabama the severe weather risk remains fairly low. But, we could certainly hear a little thunder this afternoon.
The main window for showers today will come from around 9:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. The rain will end from west to east during the mid to late afternoon hours.
COLDER TONIGHT: Much colder air returns to Alabama tonight following the rain as a deep surface low begins to develop on the mid-Atlantic coast. The sky will remain cloudy, and a few snow flurries are possible across the northeast counties of the state; places like Fort Payne, Centre, and Gadsden could see a snow flake or two after midnight tonight or early tomorrow morning.
We will be optimistic in the forecast and indicate a clearing sky tomorrow, but I would not be surprised if the sky remained mostly cloudy through the day Northeast Alabama. The day will be rather chilly with a high only in the upper 40s along with a cold north wind. Look for a low at or below freezing both tomorrow morning and Thursday morning.
WARMER DAYS: A warming trend begins Thursday afternoon with a high in the upper 50s, followed by mid 60s Friday. The air will be very dry and the sky will be sunny both days.
MILD MARCH WEEKEND: As opposed to last weekend when we were shivering, we project very comfortable temperatures this weekend. We will enjoy a high in the upper 60s Saturday, and a good chance we see low 70s Sunday. The weather remains dry, although south winds will begin to pick up Sunday.
NEXT WEEK: Showers and storms return to Alabama early next week; the GFS shows the best chance during the day Monday, while the ECMWF is slower, with the rain holding off until Monday night and Tuesday. See the Weather Xtreme video for the maps, graphics, and details.
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I have a weather program today at Vestavia Hills West Elementary School… look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 4:00 or so. Enjoy the day…
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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