James Spann: Scattered storms for Alabama today; hotter, drier weekend ahead
James Spann forecasts hotter weather for Alabama from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
HOT, HUMID DAYS AHEAD: Today’s weather across Alabama will feature a partly sunny sky with a high close to 90 degrees; the average high for Birmingham on July 23 is 91. Random, scattered showers and thunderstorms will form this afternoon and early tonight. Like recent days, heavier storms will be very efficient rain producers and a few isolated flash flooding issues could develop. The chance of any one location seeing rain today is 30-40%, and most of the showers and storms will come from 1 until 9 p.m.
An upper ridge will build into the region over the weekend, meaning the weather will begin to trend hotter and drier. Look for a good supply of sunshine Saturday and Sunday with highs in the low 90s. Afternoon showers and storms will develop, but they will be fewer in number and more widely spaced.
NEXT WEEK: The upper ridge will continue to be the main player in our weather. We expect pretty typical weather for the end of July through the week — hot, humid days with a partly to mostly sunny sky and a handful of showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon and evening hours. Odds of any one spot getting wet each day will be 20-30%, and highs will range from 91 to 94 degrees. Humidity levels will remain high.
TROPICS: A trough of low pressure just offshore of the coasts of southeastern Georgia and southern South Carolina is producing limited shower and thunderstorm activity. Environmental conditions are forecast to be marginally conducive for some gradual development over the weekend and into early next week while the system drifts offshore of the southeastern United States. The rest of the Atlantic basin, including the Gulf of Mexico, is very quiet.
ON THIS DATE IN 2010: A United States record-setting hailstone fell from a powerful supercell thunderstorm moving southeast across central South Dakota. The hailstone fell near Vivian, South Dakota. It measured 8 inches in diameter and 18.625 inches in circumference, and weighed 1.9375 pounds. This hailstone broke the previous United States record for diameter (7 inches – June 22, 2003 in Aurora, Nebraska) and weight (1.67 pounds – Sept. 3, 1970 in Coffeyville, Kansas. The Nebraska hailstone retained the record for circumference (18.75 inches). Several other stones of 6 inches or more in diameter were measured during the storm survey.
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