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OUCH: Here is a sample of temperatures around the great state of Alabama (and the adjacent states) early this morning….
Nashville, Tennessee 9 (their coldest temperature since 2003)
Northfork (near Hamilton in Marion County) 11
Mount Cheaha (Alabama’s highest mountain, elevation 2,407 feet) 12
Haleyville 13
Hackleburg 13
Huntsville (NWS Office) 15
Scrougeout (Northeast Etowah County) 15
Muscle Shoals 15
Decatur 16
Trussville 18
Pleasant Grove 18
Birmingham 18
Gadsden 18
Concord 19
Anniston 20
Tuscaloosa 21
This air has come across the vast snow and ice field across North America, and these numbers are generally below standard MOS guidance from the computer models. We will have a really hard time getting past 40 today despite a sunny sky.
IT WON’T LAST LONG: We can really be thankful this Arctic outbreak is short term. I have concern we will have this kind of air on a longer term basis as we get into January, when the North Atlantic Oscillation flips negative and the “gates to the Yukon are open”. See the Weather Xtreme video for how things look after January 1.
Clouds will begin to return tonight as a southerly flow kicks in, and tonight won’t be as cold. We will most likely drop below freezing quickly this evening, once the sun goes down, but I figure temperatures will actually rise after midnight as south winds increase. Tomorrow, we will rise into the 50s with a mostly cloudy sky, but the day will be mostly dry.
MILD AND WET CHRISTMAS: The weather continues to look very mild and wet Wednesday through Friday. A stalled front, persistent southerly flow, and southwest flow aloft will mean mostly cloudy conditions with periods of rain, and maybe even a thunderstorm involved at times. Afternoon highs will be well up in the 60s, and most places have a good chance of touching 70 on Friday. The hard freeze this morning will be a faint memory by the end of the week.
WEEKEND PEEK: A strong shortwave coming out of the Southern Plains has the potential to produce a severe weather threat over parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, West Mississippi, and West Tennessee Friday night and Saturday, but that wave will pass well to the north of Alabama and dampen out, so I really doubt if we have any significant severe weather issues here over the weekend. Looks like our best chance of showers and storms will come Saturday night into Sunday. Then, cooler and drier air slips in here early next week, but nothing too cold for late December.
TWITTER: Don’t forget, you can follow our news and weather updates from ABC 33/40 on Twitter here. And, my personal Twitter feed is here if you want to keep up with my adventures in life. Twitter is a short messaging service you can receive via the web, cell phone, or IM.
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 be cranking out a holiday edition of the show tonight; it should be posted by 10:30 or so.
We will keep the blog updated today and tonight; the great Alabama weather legend J.B. Elliott will have a list of morning lows posted a littler later today. We are now on a holiday schedule, so just one Weather Xtreme video per day through January 4. We will get back to the regular schedule when everybody is back at work and school on Monday January 5. I will be working all this week, but my pal Brian Peters will handle the TV shift for me Thursday night. So… the next Weather Xtreme video will be up tomorrow morning. Enjoy the day and stay warm!
