PLEASANT FRIDAY: Temperatures are very close to seasonal average for early September; most places are in the 88- to 92-degree range this afternoon with a sunny sky and low humidity. Tonight will be fair, but not as cool as last night as dew points begin to rise.
HOT WEEKEND: Look for highs in the mid 90s Saturday and Sunday with a good supply of sunshine both days. Humidity levels will be a bit higher, and I can’t totally rule out a few isolated showers or storms during the afternoon and evening. But odds of any one spot getting wet are less than 10% across north and central Alabama.
NEXT WEEK: The overall situation won’t change much. We could see a few widely scattered showers on a day or two, but much of the week will be dry with partly to mostly sunny days and highs in the low 90s.
FOOTBALL WEATHER: For the high school games tonight, the sky will be clear with temperatures falling from the upper 80s at kickoff into the upper 70s by the final whistle.
On Saturday, Alabama hosts New Mexico State at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa (3 p.m. kickoff). It will be a sizzling afternoon with a kickoff temperature near 97 degrees, falling into the low 90s by the fourth quarter. The sky will be mostly sunny.
Auburn will host Tulane Saturday evening (6:30 kickoff). The sky will be clear with temperatures falling from 90 degrees at kickoff into the upper 70s by the final whistle.
UAB is on the road, traveling to Akron, Ohio, to play the Zips Saturday (11 a.m. Central kickoff). The sky will be mostly sunny with temperatures rising from near 70 at kickoff into the mid 70s by the fourth quarter.
HURRICANE DORIAN: Now with sustained winds of 90 mph, the hurricane is finally moving away from the U.S. It will bring potential for hurricane conditions to parts of the Canadian Maritimes this weekend, then it becomes post-tropical over the North Atlantic next week.
TROPICAL STORM GABRIELLE: Rumors of Gabrielle’s death were greatly exaggerated. The system is back on the board in the Central Atlantic and is expected to become a hurricane early next week. But it remains far from land and is no threat to the U.S.
INVEST 94L: A well-organized wave in the eastern Atlantic has a good chance of development over the next five days and should become Tropical Storm Humberto within the next three days. Most global models bring it into the Caribbean next week, but it remains to be seen whether this will affect the Gulf of Mexico or the United States.
ON THIS DATE IN 2017: Category 5 Hurricane Irma affected the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. Maximum sustained winds were at 180 mph when the storm hit St. Thomas and St. John. Catastrophic damage was reported over the U.S. Virgin Islands and significant damage over Puerto Rico, especially over Culebra.
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