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HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY: Let’s take some time today to think about the sacrifices made over the years for the freedom we enjoy today by those who came before us.
Our weather won’t really change much today; generally dry and hot with a high at or just over 90 degrees in most spots. You might see a small return or two on radar this afternoon, but the chance of any one spot getting wet is only 10 percent.
TOMORROW/WEDNESDAY: Temperatures will stay above average (we should be in the mid 80s here in late May), and while a few afternoon showers and thunderstorms are possible, they will be pretty widely spaced.
THURSDAY/FRIDAY: Finally some heat relief as an upper low forms just northwest of Alabama. This will bring temperatures down, and rain chances up. The GFS is printing a high of 86 Thursday, and only 81 on Friday. Pretty decent chance many places around here won’t get out of the 70s Friday with clouds and occasional showers and thunderstorms. Looks like rain amounts on these two days will average 1/2 to 1 inch, just what the doctor ordered for a dry Alabama.
Birmingham’s rain deficiency for the year is 3.69″ (our total since January 1 is 19.66″), but our last really good rain here was on May 13 when we were soaked with 1.85″.
WEEKEND PEEK: The weekend looks great, with sunny days, clear cool nights, and low humidity Saturday and Sunday. The GFS shows a high of only 78 degrees here Saturday, followed by low 80s Sunday. A great chance we enjoy lows in the cool 50s early Sunday and Monday morning. A very refreshing way to begin the month of June, and meteorological summer.
BERYL IS INLAND: Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall last night around 11:15 p.m. CDT with sustained winds of 70 mph, just under hurricane strength. The circulation center this morning is just of I-10, about 40 miles west of Jacksonville. Beryl has just about stopped, and will make about a 150 degree turn over the next 24 hours, ultimately moving northeast out into the open Atlantic by mid-week, then accelerating to the east away from land. Beryl will not impact our weather in any direct way, although an outer band of showers might slip the southeast corner of the state this afternoon around Dothan.
The rest of the Atlantic is quiet. Just because we have two early season systems doesn’t mean the entire hurricane season will be busy; in fact most believe the season will be somewhat quiet due to the developing El Nino, which tends to throw harsh winds aloft over the Atlantic basin, and cool ocean water temperatures in the eastern Atlantic, the breeding ground for the Cape Verde season tropical systems that tend to be the most intense later in the season. I get the idea the ones we deal with this year will be those that develop in the “backyard”… much like Beryl.
See the Weather Xtreme video for complete details on Beryl and long range ideas.
WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 90 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. We will record this week’s episode tomorrow night at 8:30 p.m. CDT… and we will be going “video” for the first time using Google Hangouts. I will post details here tomorrow on how you can watch…. it will be streamed via YouTube.
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We are on a holiday schedule… so just one Weather Xtreme video per day. We get back to the regular routine tomorrow… enjoy Memorial Day!
