Brian Peters: Alabama begins drying out Sunday after wet Saturday from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

MORE RAIN TODAY: Another rather large area of rain moved through central Alabama early this morning, adding to our already soggy conditions. I recorded 1.65 inches between midnight and 5:30 a.m., while the Birmingham Shuttlesworth International Airport saw only 41 hundredths of an inch and the Shelby County Airport reported 78 hundredths of an inch. This was the radar image at 2:30 a.m.

So hang in there. Only one more wet day is forecast for central Alabama as we finally dispense with the wicked witch of the Gulf, Cindy! Current radar showed three patches of moderate to heavy rain occurring in central and north Alabama. The day is forecast to continue with showers and embedded thunderstorms off and on, but a front is forecast to move through the Southeast as an upper trough settles into the eastern U.S., along with a high-pressure center at the surface that settles into the Middle Mississippi River Valley.

Rain today should be heaviest across south Alabama, with one-and-a-half inches, while north and central Alabama should stay at or below one-half inch. Look for some patchy sunshine today, with highs getting out of the 70s and into the middle and upper 80s. One of the benefits of all the clouds and rain were several days of lowered temperatures, including 79 on June 21 and 75 on June 20. Flash flood watches remain for much of today across southeast Louisiana, extreme southern Mississippi and southwest Alabama, as well as north Georgia.

NEXT WEEK: The upper trough will remain over the eastern U.S. Monday and Tuesday, keeping drier air in place with dew points in the 50s. That should feel pretty good after several days with dew points in the 70s across central Alabama. Highs should be kept down a tad, too, with daily readings Monday and Tuesday in the middle 80s.

By Wednesday the surface high will slide east of us as it moves into the Carolinas. This will bring the surface wind around to the south and we begin to see moisture levels rise as dew points edge upward into the lower 60s. I think we stay dry on Wednesday, but highs will be in the upper 80s. By Thursday, with a good surface flow coming around to the south and dew points in the upper 60s, we’ll have to mention the potential for diurnally driven showers and thunderstorms with afternoon heating. Highs should remain in the middle and upper 80s and depend a great deal on just how much sun any one spot gets. This puts the rainfall through Thursday pretty light outside of the rainfall today.

Afternoon showers remain likely into Friday, but a strong upper trough moving across the Great Lakes Region Saturday will drag a cold front into the Southeast on Saturday, ramping up the possibility for showers and thunderstorms into the weekend. The front will likely stall out and dissipate across central Alabama on Sunday, keeping the risk for showers alive. Highs will be in the upper 80s over the weekend.

BEACH FORECAST: The weather at the beach will remain unsettled this weekend with a flash flood watch through 1 a.m. Sunday. The pattern should be settling into one that involves daily chances for a passing afternoon shower Monday and into the week ahead. Highs are expected to be in the middle 80s. Click here to see the AlabamaWx Beach Forecast Center page.

BEYOND NEXT WEEK: Looking into voodoo country, the Global Forecast System is pretty bullish on keeping a broad trough over the eastern U.S. That keeps us out of the heat. But the upper ridge builds back into the picture from the west by July 6 and stays there through July 9. For central and north Alabama, July 4 looks mild, with highs in the upper 80s and afternoon and early evening showers.

Have a great day, stay dry just one more day, and Godspeed.

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