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THIS MORNING: A band of light rain has been moving over Alabama during the pre-dawn hours; my rain bucket in North Shelby County shows 0.08″, and as I write this the bulk of the light rain is along and east of I-65. That rain should be out of the state by mid-morning, and the sky will become partly sunny today as drier air begins to arrive in the wake of the short wave. The high today should be in the 72 to 75 degree range for most places around here.
REST OF THE WEEK: Dry weather headlines the forecast for the rest of the week, with highs in the mid 70s tomorrow, close to 80 Thursday, followed by low 80s Friday. Some low level moisture will begin to return Friday, but the day should remain dry.
THE WEEKEND: A major storm system will form over the Southwest U.S. during the mid-week period, and will bring the next significant rain event to Alabama about the time the weekend begins. Rain will likely move into the state after midnight Friday night, and we will forecast periods of rain and a few thunderstorms Saturday and Saturday night, with average rain amounts of 1 inch likely. Some spots could see more, perhaps up to 2 inches in a few neighborhoods.
SPC has defined severe weather risks to the west of Alabama with this system, but at this point our instability values look rather marginal for a major severe weather problem Saturday. But, then again, this is late April, and we always have to watch any energetic system like this.
The rain should end Sunday morning, with the sky becoming partly sunny Sunday afternoon.
RACE WEEKEND: This is race weekend at the Talladega Superspeedway; Saturday will be problematic with periods of rain and thunderstorms at the track, but Sunday looks much better, and at this point we believe the rain will be over by the time the Aaron’s 499 begins. The high Saturday will be in the 70s, with low to mid 80s possible Sunday as sunshine returns.
NEXT WEEK: A broad upper low over the eastern U.S. could keep some clouds around for the first half of next week, and maybe even a little light rain over North Alabama in spots, but nothing too significant.
VOODOO COUNTRY: Still no sign of any serious severe weather issues as we head into May… so far so good this severe weather season. But, we still have a long way to go.
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. We will record a few show tonight; Bob Baron of Huntsville will be our guest. Many of you know Bob from his days on TV up in the Tennessee Valley, but after his departure from television has put together a worldwide radar/software company that has done very well. Should be a fun show.
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I will be speaking to the senior adults this morning at Harden’s Chapel Baptist Church in St. Clair County… look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 3:30 this afternoon. Enjoy the day!
