DRY DAYS: A big batch of dry air continues to move into the Deep South this afternoon. There is a small area of light rain over Houston County; otherwise, the state is dry with a mostly sunny sky. Temperatures are below average, between 85 and 92 degrees, and the humidity is low. Tonight will be clear with a low between 65 and 72.

THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY: Look for mostly sunny days, fair nights and a trend toward hotter afternoons through the weekend. Any showers will remain across far south Alabama and even there will be widely spaced. Highs will be in the mid 90s Thursday and Friday, followed by upper 90s over the weekend. Humidity levels will remain fairly low for July, however.

NEXT WEEK: The weather continues to look generally dry during the first half of the week; then we will bring back the chance of scattered showers and storms next Thursday and Friday as moisture levels rise a bit and the air becomes more unstable. Highs will remain in the 90s, with lows in the 70s.

TROPICS: A broad trough of low pressure a few hundred miles off the southeastern U.S. coast continues to produce disorganized showers and thunderstorms. Environmental conditions appear only marginally favorable for additional development of this system over the next couple of days before it moves inland over the southeastern U.S. by this weekend. The chance of development is only 10%, and the rest of the Atlantic basin is very quiet.

ON THIS DATE IN 1926: At the Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey, lightning struck one of the explosives storage structures during a thunderstorm and started a fire. As a result, several million pounds of explosives detonated over two to three days. The explosions not only destroyed 187 of 200 buildings but caused military and civilian casualties as well. Close to 100 people were injured as the explosions spread havoc within a 15-mile radius.

ON THIS DATE IN 2005: Dennis made landfall near Gulf Breeze as a Category 3 hurricane with winds around 120 mph. The system continued to move northward and was downgraded to a tropical storm as it entered Marengo County. Several counties across the state reported downed trees and powerlines, leaving 280,000 people without electric power. Downed trees also left numerous county and state roads temporarily impassable. Winds gusted to 70 mph at Camden.

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