James Spann forecasts a cold end for the Alabama work week from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

STILL WET THIS MORNING: A large mass of rain continues across Alabama this morning; the rain will end from west to east in coming hours as a complex storm system begins to lift away. Strong northwest winds will develop as the pressure gradient tightens, averaging 12-25 mph with occasionally higher gusts. Clouds will linger through the afternoon, and unfortunately temperatures will go nowhere. In fact, they will slowly fall, and some communities in north Alabama could reach the upper 30s this afternoon. It will be a raw, cold and blustery day.

The sky will clear tonight as drier air returns to the state, and we will be in the 28- to 34-degree range early tomorrow morning.

THE ALABAMA WEEKEND: Tomorrow will be a dry day with a good supply of sunshine; the high will be in the mid 50s. Clouds will increase tomorrow night, and Sunday will be a mostly cloudy day with some risk of scattered showers during the afternoon thanks to a passing disturbance. The rain will be nothing heavy or widespread, and the high Sunday will be in the upper 50s.

BIRMINGHAM BOWL: We’ll have great weather for tomorrow’s game at Legion Field (Memphis vs Wake Forest; 11 a.m. kickoff) — mostly sunny, with a temperature of 50 at kickoff, rising into the mid 50s by the final whistle.

CHRISTMAS WEEK: The weather will be dry Monday and Tuesday with ample sunshine both days; afternoon highs will be in the 55- to 60-degree range with morning lows in the 30s. Wednesday for now looks dry with a mix of sun and clouds; a decent part of the state could see a high over 60 degrees. Then, the weather looks wet and unsettled by the end of the week. Models are not in good agreement in the overall surface pattern, but the main threat will most likely be heavy rain in the Thursday/Friday time frame.

WINTER ARRIVES TODAY: Winter officially arrives over the northern hemisphere this afternoon at 4:23 p.m., when the sun will be directly over the Tropic of Capricorn. Most can notice the late dawns and early sunsets this time of the year and the low arc of the sun across the sky each day. Be sure to look at your noontime shadow when it returns Saturday. Around the time of the December solstice, it’s your longest noontime shadow of the year. We will see an increasing amount of daylight beginning tomorrow, which will continue through the summer solstice on June 21, 2019.

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For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit AlabamaWx.