James Spann: Cold, dry weather for Alabama
James Spann forecasts another cold day, night for Alabama from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
SUB-FREEZING START: Temperatures are in the 20s all the way down to the Gulf Coast this morning; Mobile reported 28 degrees just before daybreak. The sky is clear, but a west wind persists, keeping temperatures in the mid 20s over north Alabama. Today will be sunny with a high between 45 and 50 over the northern half of the state; the average high for Birmingham on Dec. 1 is 60.
Tonight will be just as cold if not colder than last night, as the wind should be calm. By daybreak Wednesday look for lows between 20 and 29 degrees, and another freeze is likely down to the coast. A warming trend begins Wednesday afternoon as temperatures rise into the 50s.
RAIN RETURNS: Clouds will increase Thursday ahead of a slow-moving upper low to the west, and some rain will likely reach west Alabama by late afternoon. It now looks like the most widespread rain statewide with this system will come Thursday night into Friday morning, with the rain ending from west to east during the afternoon hours Friday. Moisture will be limited; rain amounts of one-quarter to one-half inch look likely. Highs will be in the 50s both days.
THE ALABAMA WEEKEND: A cold-core upper low will pass just north of Alabama Saturday. While most of the state will be in a dry slot, some moisture could wrap into the Tennessee Valley of far north Alabama with some scattered light rain possible. But for most of the state the day will be dry with a partly sunny sky. Highs will be in the 40s over north Alabama, with 50s for the rest of the state. Sunday will be mostly sunny with a high in the low to mid 50s.
NEXT WEEK: For now the week looks cool and dry with highs mostly in the 50s and lows in the 30s.
MONDAY’S SNOW: As expected, snow flurries and showers developed in the cold air across Alabama Monday. The heaviest snow was in Marshall County, where a lake effect snow band set up as a fetch of air moved over the Tennessee River, enhancing snow rates there (along with the upslope effect). About 1 inch accumulated on grassy areas, but roads were just wet.
DECEMBER CLIMATOLOGY: Welcome to December. The average high/low at Birmingham drops from 60/30 today to 54/34 by the end of the month. December can feature some very active weather and is in the core of the late fall/early winter tornado season in Alabama. The average rain for the month at Birmingham is 4.45 inches. While snow is still relatively rare, it can happen in December. Parts of north Alabama had a “White Christmas” on Dec. 25, 2010, with amounts of 2-4 inches in scattered pockets.
ON THIS DATE IN 2006: A winter storm produced more than 6 inches of snow along a 1,000-mile-long path from central Oklahoma to northern Michigan from Nov. 30 to Dec. 1. The storm also produced significant freezing rain, which affected the St. Louis area. An estimated 500 or more homes and businesses were without power in that area after this storm.
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