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Please note that James Spann is on vacation this week, so there will only be one Weather Xtreme Video posted. I should have it posted by 8 am or so, typically I get it posted a bit earlier than that but usually no later than 8 am.
Those low 50s across Central Alabama yesterday are going to seem downright tropical compared with the highs today that will be in the lower 40s. Got to make a note to James Spann – I think he left the refrigerator door open when he went on vacation!
In the upper atmosphere, our 500 millibar trough that has helped to create so much havoc with that pre-Christmas storm is finally beginning to edge toward the East Coast of the US. Winter weather advisories are still in effect for the area from the eastern Great Lakes into New England. For us, as the trough goes by we’ll see reinforcing cold air so today will be downright cold with highs about 10 degrees colder than yesterday. Cold and dry without one single echo on radar this morning.
The GFS has slowed down the progression of the next system which is good for us since it essentially should remove the threat of any wintery precipitation for the start of Wednesday. With a brief ridge on Tuesday we should see temperatures climb back toward the 50-degree mark. As the trough moves out of the southern Rockies across Texas, the rain is not expected to arrive in Alabama until late morning or early afternoon on Wednesday. So the precipitation on Wednesday should be just rain.
The rain should wind down by Thursday afternoon with rainfall amounts of one half to three-quarters of an inch. As the surface low moves up the East Coast, it will create another winter storm for them. But for us, it looks like we’ll turn colder again for New Year’s Day with some small chance that we might see a few snow flurries with the clouds. As of this GFS run, the likelihood of anything more than snow flurries seems pretty remote.
The first weekend of 2010 is also expected to remain cold with a deep trough located along the East Coast and short wave troughs rotating through the flow helping to keep the eastern half of the country in the deep freeze.
Looking into our first full week of 2010, the GFS is maintaining an active pattern with another storm system around the 9th and yet another one on the 12th/13th.
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Got this Xtreme posted a tad earlier today because I am dropping a friend off at the airport this morning for a flight to Denver. Wish I were going – Denver is a great town. Enjoy the day and Godspeed.
-Brian-
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