Back In The Saddle Again

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I bet J.B. Elliott remembers this song by Gene Autry…

“I’m back in the saddle again
Out where a friend is a friend
Where the longhorn cattle feed
On the lowly gypsum weed
Back in the saddle again

Ridin’ the range once more
Totin’ my old .44
Where you sleep out every night
And the only law is right
Back in the saddle again”

I do want to thank J.B., Bill Murray, Brian Peters, and John Oldshue for covering all of the various duties for me since December 24, my last official day of work before the vacation started. During the time I was gone we had a snow event on Christmas Day, and a severe weather event on New Year’s Day (during the pre-dawn hours), so I know these guys had little sleep and long hours.

CALM WEEK: Sunny and cool weather is the story today with a high in the low 50s for most communities. We reach the mid 50s tomorrow with a partly sunny sky.

At mid-week on Wednesday, an impulse coming through the zonal flow has the potential to trigger a few showers, but the air is very dry, and the best chance of raindrops will be along and south of I-20. North of Birmingham hardly any rain will fall, and over Central Alabama amounts should be less than 1/10 of an inch. Some places near the Alabama Gulf Coast might pick up 1/2 inch, but even there moisture levels are certainly marginal.

Then, on Thursday and Friday, the weather will be cool and dry with a good supply of sunshine. The high on Thursday will be close to 50, but will drop into the upper 40s Friday as the big Polar vortex over eastern Canada begins to drop south.

WEEKEND PEEK: Looks quiet Saturday and Sunday, but rather chilly with highs in the 40s and lows in the 20s. Expect a good supply of sunshine both days.

NEXT WEEK: An interesting look on Monday with a weak surface low in the Gulf of Mexico, south of Mobile Bay. We will mention a chance of some light rain; if the precipitation begins early enough (the pre-dawn hours), then there might be a window for a little freezing rain, sleet, or maybe even a snow flake somewhere over North Alabama. But, the deeper moisture will be over the southern half of the state, so at this point it doesn’t look like a major threat. We will keep an eye on it in coming days.

LONG RANGE: The door seems to be open for some winter fun and games at mid-month. Watch the Weather Xtreme video and you will see the 06Z operational GFS is hinting at a snow threat for parts of the mid-South (mainly Tennessee and Arkansas) around January 15, followed by flood of very cold, Arctic air on January 18 complete with a 1048 mb high over Oklahoma and wind chill index values well below zero. The NAO goes strongly negative in a week or so, and supports something like that, so be aware that the gates to the Yukon could open up later this month. See the Weather Xtreme video for more details.

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Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 3:30 this afternoon… enjoy the day!