PLEASANT AFTERNOON: Temperatures will range between 66 and 72 degrees across the northern half of Alabama this afternoon. Some patches in southern Alabama have reached the mid-1970s as the warming trend continues. Skies will be partly to mostly sunny and we will remain dry tonight with a low in the 40’s.
Thursday will be a mild Thanksgiving day with a high of about 70 degrees, but cloud will increase and rain will return to Thursday night through Friday morning levels. The main window will come from around 6:00 p.m. to noon. Light thunderstorms are possible, but severe thunderstorms are not to be feared. We should be generally dry Friday afternoon and overnight as the wake moves east. The high will be in the mid 60s.
THE WEEKEND: Models continue to trend slower with an upper low emerging from Texas. It now looks like the bulk of the weekend’s rain will come from 6pm Saturday to 6am Sunday, although some scattered showers are possible on Saturday afternoon. There will be no severe storms and likely very little thunder with essentially no surface based instability. Skies will be partly sunny on Sunday afternoon as dry air returns to the state. Highs are near 70 on Saturday and in the mid to high 60’s on Sunday.
NEXT WEEK: Dry, comfortable weather continues Monday and Tuesday, but rain and storms will return to the state ahead of the next weather system on Wednesday. This will be a fairly dynamic system and we will be monitoring the parameters for the potential for severe thunderstorms over the next few days. Dry, cooler air returns for Thursday and Friday with highs in the upper 50’s.
IRON BOWL UPDATE: Based on the slow movement of the upper low that is lifting out of Texas, there’s a good chance the most widespread rain will arrive after Iron Bowl Saturday, but a few rain showers are still a possibility during the game. Expect a kick-off temperature of nearly 70 degrees, falling back into the mid-60s by the final whistle. On a positive note, Saturday morning in Tuscaloosa is now looking dry.
ON THIS DAY IN 1912: The Rouse Simmons was a three-masted schooner famous for sinking on Lake Michigan during a violent storm. The ship was en route to Chicago with a cargo of Christmas trees when it sank off the coast of Two Rivers, Wisconsin, killing everyone on board.
ON THIS DAY IN 2004: An EF-1 tornado moved through portions of Lamar and Marion counties, causing extensive damage over a wide area from near Detroit to Hamilton. More tornadoes would land the next morning.
BEACH FORECAST: Click here to view the AlabamaWx Beach Forecast Center page.
For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit AlabamaWx.