James Spann: Hot afternoons for Alabama with only isolated showers
HOT AUGUST WEATHER: Temperatures are in the 90s across Alabama this afternoon with a mostly sunny sky. A few isolated showers are over Baldwin County and into the Florida Panhandle; those will dissipate after dark. Tonight will be mostly fair with a low between 68 and 74 degrees.
Any showers Wednesday should remain confined to the far southern counties of the state, and even there most places will stay dry. We will mention the chance of isolated afternoon and evening showers and storms statewide Thursday and Friday, but the chance of any one spot seeing rain is only 20-30%.
LABOR DAY WEEKEND: The weather stays hot. Highs will be mostly in the mid 90s Saturday, followed by low 90s Sunday and Monday. We will mention the chance of a few random, scattered showers and storms each day, mostly from 2 until 10 p.m. The chance of any one location getting wet is 30-40%, and for the moment it looks like the higher coverage will be on Sunday — pretty typical late-summer weather for Alabama.
NEXT WEEK: Heat levels drop significantly, and by the latter half of the week highs will be in the low to mid 80s. The door is open for higher rain chances Wednesday through Friday as the ridge continues to weaken and moisture levels rise.
TROPICS: An area of low pressure could form in the central portion of the Tropical Atlantic in a few days. Thereafter, environmental conditions appear generally favorable for some slow development of the system this weekend into early next week as it moves westward to west-northwestward at 10 to 15 mph. For now, the National Hurricane Center gives it only a 20% chance of development.
The rest of the Atlantic basin remains very quiet.
FOOTBALL WEATHER: UAB kicks off its season Thursday, taking on Alcorn State at Protective Stadium in downtown Birmingham (7 p.m. kickoff). There’s just a small risk of a shower during the first quarter; otherwise, the sky will be mostly fair with temperatures falling through the 80s, reaching the 70s by the fourth quarter. Jacksonville State will host Coastal Carolina Thursday evening (7 p.m. kickoff). There’s a small risk of a shower early in the game; otherwise, it will be mostly fair with temperatures falling into the 70s by the fourth quarter.
Alabama hosts Western Kentucky Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium (6 p.m. kickoff). A brief shower or storm can’t be ruled out during the first half; otherwise, it will be mostly fair with temperatures falling from near 89 degrees at kickoff to the upper 70s by the final whistle. Auburn will host Alabama A&M at Jordan-Hare Stadium (6:30 p.m. kickoff). Again, a shower or storm is possible, but not likely, during the first half; otherwise, it will be mostly fair with upper 80s at kickoff and upper 70s by the fourth quarter.
Troy will host Nevada Saturday (6 p.m. kickoff). There’s an outside risk of a shower or storm during the first half; otherwise, the weather will be fair with temperatures falling from around 90 degrees at kickoff to near 80 by the final whistle.
ON THIS DATE IN 1883: Krakatoa volcano exploded in the East Indies. The explosion was heard more than 2,500 miles away, and every barograph around the world recorded the passage of the airwave, up to seven times. Giant waves, 125 feet high and traveling 300 mph, devastated everything in their path, hurling ashore coral blocks weighing up to 900 tons and killing more than 36,000 people. Volcanic ash was carried around the globe in 13 days, producing blue and green suns in the tropics and vivid red sunsets in higher latitudes. The temperature of the earth was lowered 1 degree for the next two years, finally recovering to normal by 1888.
ON THIS DATE IN 2005: Hurricane Katrina reached Category 3 intensity in the Gulf of Mexico about 335 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph.
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