James Spann: Dry pattern for most of Alabama through the weekend
CALM WINTER WEATHER: High clouds are streaming into Alabama this afternoon, but much of the state won’t see any meaningful precipitation for the next seven days. Parts of south Alabama will have a chance of some light rain Tuesday thanks to a disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico; the best chance will be along and south of a line from Mobile to Dothan, and amounts there should be less than one-half inch. Otherwise, Tuesday will be mostly cloudy and cool with a high between 48 and 53 degrees.
Wednesday will be sunny and colder; after a low in the mid 20s we expect a high between 45 and 49 degrees. Dry weather continues Thursday with a high in the mid 50s. Clouds will likely return to the state Friday ahead of an upper trough and cold front, but the air will be very dry and the chance of significant precipitation looks very low at this point — maybe a few sprinkles, but most places won’t see enough to measure. The high Friday will be between 47 and 51 degrees.
THE ALABAMA WEEKEND: Saturday will be sunny and cold; we start the day well down in the 20s, and the highs will be in the upper 30s and low 40s. Sunday will feature a sunny sky with a high between 50 and 55 degrees.
NEXT WEEK: The weather will be dry Monday and Tuesday; rain will likely return Wednesday or Thursday ahead of a cold front. An upper-air pattern change will likely bring above-average temperatures to Alabama and the Deep South next week.
ON THIS DATE IN 1963: A cold wave was in progress across the Deep South. Birmingham dropped to 2 degrees below zero. Other lows included minus 4 at Huntsville, minus 3 at Muscle Shoals, minus 1 at Anniston, 3 at Tuscaloosa, 5 at Montgomery and 8 at Mobile.
ON THIS DATE IN 1967: A tornado outbreak across the central U.S. was the farthest north ever recorded in the winter up to that time. Severe weather occurred across a good portion of southeast and east-central Iowa. Two-inch hail fell at Armstrong, and more than two dozen tornadoes were reported. Five miles north of Fort Madison, one fatality occurred from a tornado, along with six injuries. A tornado causing F4 damage killed three people and injured 216 in St. Louis County, Missouri. Storms also affected parts of northern and central Illinois. One strong tornado in Mason County killed one person and injured three others. Another tornado moved across the Champaign-Urbana metropolitan area, injuring five people.
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