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A little brisk up north in the core of this Arctic air moving into Alabama… some 5:00 a.m. observations include:
Cook, Minnesota -33
Sioux City, Iowa -16
Chicago, Illinois -3
Kansas City, Missouri -2
North winds will pick up across Alabama today and cold air advection is the story. We expect temperatures to hold steady in the 30s all day with wind chill values below freezing at times. The sky should clear by midday across the northern half of the state as the cold and dry air takes over; clouds will linger over South Alabama with some light rain at times in advance of the Arctic front.
HARD FREEZE TONIGHT: We will continue to forecast an average low of 19, but the actual range will be from 15 to 25. Some of the colder valleys up in Northeast Alabama might reach the 10 to 15 degree range.
WARMER WEEKEND: The trend in model output continues to point toward a dry weekend; the light rain Friday night and Saturday will remain over the southern half of the state, so I think we can completely remove the chance of showers on Saturday on the next forecast update. There will be clouds around on Saturday, but for now the day looks dry for the northern counties. We should reach the low to mid 50s on Saturday, with low 60s Sunday afternoon.
NEXT WEEK: Monday will be dry and mild, but we will highlight a good chance of showers and thunderstorms on Tuesday with a cold front moving into the state. At this point we don’t expect any severe weather, but we should see one-half to one inch of rain. Another wet weather system will arrive Thursday and Thursday night, with potential for over one inch with that one. The latest GFS shows the rain moving out early in the day Friday, with a shot of colder air moving back into Alabama.
LONG RANGE: I think changeable is the word; with a few good looking storm systems and shots of cold air in the February 2-8 time frame.
STORM ALERT 2008: Our annual severe weather awareness tour across Alabama begins next week! Our first stop will at Oak Grove High School on Thursday January 31; from there will have shows in Anniston, Northport, Lineville, and Moody. See the details on this year’s show, and the schedule here. We hope to see you along the way!
WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 30 minute netcast anytime on the web, or on iTunes. This is the show all about weather featuring many familiar voices, including our meteorologists here at ABC 33/40. You can even listen here on the blog; look for the player on the top left.
Today I will be on the road to East Alabama; I will be speaking at Weaver Elementary this morning over in Calhoun County. Then, it is back to the office and the afternoon Weather Xtreme video will be posted by 3:30. Enjoy the day!
