THIS WEEKEND: Much of the nation will be dry today, except for the northwestern corner of Washington state and up in New England. In Alabama, we’ll have sunny skies with highs warming up into the mid-50s to the lower 60s.

High pressure will be close by over the Florida panhandle, which will keep our skies sunny through most of the daylight hours Sunday before clouds begin to build during the late afternoon through the remainder of the day. A few showers will be possible overnight. Highs will be in the 60s.

NEXT WEEK: We’ll start to get a southwesterly flow on Monday that will pump warm, moist Gulf air over the state. With that, widespread showers and thunderstorms will form and expand across much of Alabama, especially along and north of I-20. Highs will range from the upper 50s to the mid-60s.

A cold front moving in our direction on Tuesday will bring more showers and thunderstorms. This latest run looks to keep a good portion of the morning dry, but storms will move in during the afternoon, mainly north of I-20. Highs will be much warmer, topping out in the lower 70s to the lower 80s.

That cold front creeps a little closer on Wednesday, but ridging builds in before another trough moves in. This will allow for the shower activity to dissipate through the morning and keep much of the afternoon and evening dry. Highs will be in the lower 60s to the lower 80s from northwest to southeast.

On Thursday, the front continues to hang out just to our west, but a shortwave will bring showers back into northern Alabama. Highs will top out in the upper 60s to the lower 80s.

Finally, the cold front gets the push and will move across Alabama on Friday. Rain will move across the state throughout the day, with conditions improving from the northwest to the southeast starting by mid-afternoon. Highs will range from the lower 50s to the lower 70s from northwest to southeast.

For more weather news and information from James Spann, Scott Martin and other members of the James Spann team, visit AlabamaWx.