A fairly miserable day is in progress across north and central Alabama with temperatures in the 36- to 42-degree range, thick cloud cover and some light precipitation. Some of that precipitation is falling as a mix of light rain and snow. Check out this view from atop Monte Sano Mountain in Huntsville from Kevin Richmond:
No travel problems are occurring, though, with ground temperatures in the upper 30s to low 40s. The precipitation area will slide to the south and east and wane as we go through the late afternoon, with precipitation ending by mid-evening. Lows tonight will be cold, in the middle 20s across north central Alabama, with upper 20s south of I-20. Here are official forecast lows for Tuesday morning.
PATCHY ICE IN THE MORNING: The sky will clear late tonight, and we drop into the 20s by daybreak. While the sky will be clear Tuesday morning, any standing water left over from the big weekend rain could turn into ice in spots.
TUESDAY/WEDNESDAY: These two days will be dry with a warming trend as high pressure builds in; the sky will be mostly sunny both days. The high will be around 50 on Tuesday, followed by mid to upper 50s on Wednesday.
NEXT WEATHERMAKER: Our next system will come in the form of another strong upper-level trough that will be moving onto the Plains by Wednesday. Rain will arrive over western Alabama during the day Thursday and increase overnight, with 1 to 1.5 inches expected across the northern half of the state. There could be some thunder, with the surface near Memphis by Friday morning, but I wouldn’t count on it.
HEADING TO THE WEEKEND: Rain should diminish by midday Friday, and a slot of drier air could keep the state relatively dry Friday afternoon and Friday night, but we will still keep a chance of showers going. The high Friday will be in the mid 50s. We will keep a chance of showers in the forecast Saturday morning, but the rest of the weekend looks dry. Sunday should feature a good supply of sunshine as dry air settles into the state; the high both days will be in the 55- to 59-degree range.
NEXT WEEK: For now the week looks relatively quiet — generally dry with seasonal temperatures and highs mostly in the 50s.
I CAN SEE CHRISTMAS: The Global Forecast System paints the picture that Alabama will be dry and seasonal for the holiday period. No real hope of a white Christmas.
ON THIS DATE IN 2010: Greek Television reported that a shower of tiny fish rained down on the village of Korona after a strong thunderstorm. Experts reported that the unexpected bounty was probably caused when a waterspout picked up the fish from Lake Doirani.
BEACH FORECAST: Click here to see the AlabamaWx Beach Forecast Center page.
WEATHER BRAINS: You can listen to our weekly 90-minute show any time on your favorite podcast app. This is the show all about weather featuring many familiar voices, including meteorologists at ABC 33/40.
For more weather news and information from James Spann, Bill Murray and other members of the James Spann team, visit AlabamaWx.