Still Dry Today; Heat Levels Creep Up

An all new edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player on the right sidebar of the blog. You can subscribe to the Weather Xtreme video on iTunes by clicking here.

A LITTLE HOTTER: Keep in mind we have experienced 90 degree heat on only 5 days so far this month (based on data from the Birmingham Airport)… the average high for the month is 85.6 degrees. So, if we do reach 90 degrees this afternoon as forecast, it will be one of the hotter days of the month. The air remains dry and stable, and any showers this afternoon should be pretty hard to find, although the chance is not zero.

TOMORROW AND THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND: The air aloft will be a little cooler, and low level moisture levels will rise. So, the risk of scattered, mostly afternoon and evening showers and storms will return on these three days. The deeper moisture axis will be over the eastern half of the state, but West Alabama could see a few storms as well during the peak of the daytime heating process. Chance of any one spot getting wet will run in the 30 percent category, and the high will be at or just over 90 degrees each day with a mix of sun and clouds.

NEXT WEEK: The risk of scattered showers and storms will continue into Labor Day, but global models advertise a nice long wave upper trough setting up over the eastern third of the nation, which will drive a cold front through here Tuesday. A nice surge of cooler, drier air arrives initially in North Alabama Tuesday, and statewide by Tuesday night and Wednesday. Sure looks like a good setup to get everybody down into the 50s early Wednesday and Thursday morning; highs will drop into the low 80s with low humidity levels. See the Weather Xtreme video for the maps, graphics, and details.

GULF COAST WEATHER: We project a good supply of sunshine on the Gulf Coast today from Panama City over to Gulf Shores. Then, for tomorrow through Labor Day, about 6 to 8 hours of sun each day with a few scattered showers and thunderstorms. Highs on the immediate coast will hold in the upper 80s, and the sea water temperature this morning at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab is 82 degrees.

TROPICAL WEATHER: The Atlantic basin is rather quiet, but NHC is bullish on a wave that will emerge off the African coast within the next 24 hours. No doubt there will be a significant uptick in activity as we get into September.

EIGHT YEARS AGO TODAY: At 6:10 a.m. CDT on August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall in southern Plaquemines Parish Louisiana, just south of Buras, as a Category 3 hurricane. Maximum winds were estimated near 125 mph to the east of the center.

Katrina was the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall. At least 1,836 people died in the actual hurricane and in the subsequent floods, making it the deadliest U.S. hurricane since the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane; total property damage was estimated at $81 billion, nearly triple the damage wrought by Hurricane Andrew in 1992.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: For some high school teams, their first game of the season will be played tonight; for those games the sky will be clear with a kickoff temperature in the mid 80s. Then, tomorrow evening, the chance of any one stadium seeing a brief shower or storm is in the 20/30 percent range; otherwise mostly fair with upper 80s at kickoff, with temperatures falling through the 80s during the games, reaching the upper 70s by the final whistle.

COLLEGE GAMES: Auburn will host Washington State Saturday evening (6:00 p.m. kickoff) at Jordan-Hare Stadium; a brief shower or storm is possible during the first half… chance of a shower at the stadium is 30 percent. Otherwise, mostly fair with a kickoff temperature near 88 degrees, then dropping through the 80s during the game. The weather down at Troy will be almost identical for the UAB/Troy game; the kickoff temperature down in Pike County will be close to 90. Alabama won’t have to worry about weather since they play Virginia Tech in the Georgia Dome, but for fans headed over for the game, Saturday in Atlanta will feature a mix of sun and clouds with a high around 90 degrees, and a few pop-up afternoon showers or storms are possible.

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.

CONNECT: You can find me on all of the major social networks…

Facebook
Twitter
Google Plus
Instagram

I will be speaking to the Homewood Rotary Club today… look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 4:00 this afternoon. Enjoy the day!

Tags: dry

Category: Alabama's Weather