James Spann: A cool start to delightful fall day in Alabama from Alabama News Center on Vimeo.

ANOTHER CHILLY MORNING: Here are some temperatures across Alabama just before sunrise:

• Gadsden — 38
• Fort Payne — 38
• Jasper — 39
• Chelsea — 39
• Remlap — 40
• Talladega — 40
• Hueytown — 41
• Morris — 41
• Anniston — 42
• Montgomery — 43
• Cullman — 43
• Decatur — 44
• Tuscaloosa — 46
• Birmingham — 46
• Dothan — 47
• Mobile — 47

Today will feature a sunny sky with a high between 75 and 81 degrees this afternoon. We stay dry Tuesday with a high not too far from 80 degrees for most Alabama communities.

WEDNESDAY: A disturbance loaded with tropical moisture, partly from Lidia (expected to be a hurricane when it moves into Mexico from the eastern Pacific Tuesday night), will bring a beneficial rain event to south Alabama. The most widespread and heaviest rain will be south of U.S. 80 (Demopolis to Montgomery to Opelika), where a total of 1-3 inches is likely. Some light rain is possible as far north as I-59 (Tuscaloosa to Birmingham to Gadsden). The northern third of the state will likely miss the rain completely.

Thursday will be dry with a partly sunny sky; the high will be in the 70s for most places.

FRIDAY AND THE WEEKEND: An approaching cold front will bring a chance of showers statewide Friday and Friday night. Unfortunately, it looks like rain amounts will be rather light and spotty with limited moisture available. The sky will clear Saturday morning, and Sunday will feature sunshine in full supply. The high will be 70 to 75 degrees Saturday, dropping into the 60s Sunday.

NEXT WEEK: For now, most of the week looks dry with sunny, pleasant days and clear, cool nights; highs will be mostly in the 60s with lows in the 40s.TROPICS: A small area of low pressure with disorganized thunderstorm activity has formed in the extreme southwestern Gulf of Mexico about 75 miles northeast of Coatzacoalcos, Mexico. Further development, if any, is expected to be slow to occur while the system moves slowly northwestward. Around midweek, the low is forecast to merge with a frontal system over the western Gulf of Mexico. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) gives it only a 10% chance of development.

A low-latitude tropical wave several hundred miles south of the Cabo Verde Islands continues to produce a large area of showers and thunderstorms. This system has become better organized since yesterday, and environmental conditions appear conducive for gradual development during the next several days. A tropical depression is likely to form around midweek while the system moves west-northwestward or northwestward across the eastern tropical Atlantic. It will likely turn northward and will be no threat to the Lesser Antilles or the U.S. The NHC gives it a 90% chance of development.

DROUGHT MONITOR: Parts of southwest Alabama are in an extreme drought; a severe drought covers much of north, west and south Alabama. Conditions are not as bad over the eastern counties but are abnormally dry.

The Alabama Forestry Commission maintains a fire alert for the entire state. Permits for outdoor burning will no longer be issued until further notice. Anyone burning a field, grassland or woodland without a burn permit may be subject to prosecution for committing a Class B misdemeanor.

ON THIS DATE IN 1804: The famous Snow Hurricane moved ashore near Atlantic City. After briefly passing through Connecticut and into Massachusetts, cold air was entrained in the circulation with heavy snow falling between New York and southern Canada. Berkshires, Massachusetts, and Concord, New Hampshire, recorded 2 feet of snow. This storm produced the first observation of snow from a hurricane, but not the last. Hurricane Ginny of 1963 brought up to 18 inches of snow to portions of Maine.

ON THIS DATE IN 2001: An unusually strong fall outbreak of tornadoes spawned at least 23 twisters across parts of Nebraska and Oklahoma. Hardest hit was the town of Cordell, Oklahoma, but a 22-minute lead time led to an amazingly low casualty count: only nine injuries and no fatalities.

For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit AlabamaWx.