Sunny Summer Days

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DRIER AIR TAKES OVER: Following some beneficial rain for much of Alabama yesterday, noticeably drier air moves into North Alabama today. Dewpoints are in the low 60s over northern Tennessee, and those should move southward today, and accordingly the best chance of a shower or storm this afternoon should be down over South Alabama. The high today will be in the low 90s, and with the lower humidity levels the day will be rather comfortable for late June in Alabama.

REST OF THE WEEK AND THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND: We are expecting sunny hot days and fair nights through Saturday, with highs mostly in the mid 90s. As you know, I am always very uncomfortable leaving out some risk of an afternoon storm for us this time of the year, but for now the risk of any one spot getting wet is so small that we won’t mention it in the forecast. The added soil moisture from the rain in recent days should help keep the heat from getting out of hand despite the building upper ridge.

We will introduce the chance of widely scattered afternoon storms Sunday as moisture levels increase a bit. Scattered storms could be a little more numerous Monday, but the 00Z GFS has trended drier. We stay in the mid 90s Sunday and Monday.

NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND: Pretty routine summer weather is the story for much of next week and into mid-July as the core of the heat ridge stays west of Alabama. See the Weather Xtreme video for more long range ideas.

ARLENE ARRIVES: The first tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season has formed in the far Southwest Gulf of Mexico. Arlene is a minimal storm with sustained winds of 40 mph; it will move into the Mexican Gulf Coast late tonight producing heavy rain along the track. No threat at all to the U.S., and the rest of the Atlantic basin is quiet as a mouse.

AT THE BEACH: The sky will be cloudy at times today with scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms, but tomorrow through the weekend will feature about 7 to 9 hours of sunshine each day with just a few scattered showers and storms. Highs along the immediate coast will be close to 90, with mid 90s inland. Sea water temperatures along the coast are in the mid to upper 80s, and there is no sign of any tropical weather issues in the short term.

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Look for the next Weather Xtreme video here by 3:30 this afternoon. Enjoy the day!