Summertime Weather for Your Weekend

Temperatures once again this morning were near the 70-degree mark across Central Alabama with a few passing clouds in the sky helping to make the sunrise interesting this morning. The high in Birmingham yesterday was 89 and we’ve probably seen the last of highs in the 80s for at least a few days – probably until late next week. The flow over the Southeast US will gradually become impacted by the development of an upper ridge that will keep us warmer with highs in the lower half of the 90s through Wednesday.

For the first half of the week ahead, Sunday through Tuesday, the upper air pattern will see a ridge slide into the Southeast US from the east and gradually move westward. The ridge will increase heights across the Southeast US and bring highs into the lower half of the 90s with a continuation of mainly isolated showers and thunderstorms.

The upper ridge slides further west from Tuesday into Wednesday as another fairly strong upper trough digs into the Middle Mississippi River Valley. This new trough does not look as deep as the one we saw early last week, it will help to lower height values as it dampens the ridge which should become situated over the Southwest US. Highs for the latter half of the week should dip back out of the 90s into the upper 80s. This should also result in slightly better chances for showers and storms Wednesday with better chances by Thursday. Lift should be enhance with the approach of a weak front that will also add to diurnal heating to produce better coverage of showers and storms Thursday.

By Friday and Saturday the upper air pattern becomes a bit noisy as the upper trough shears out across the Great Lakes while leaving the bottom of the trough across the Lower Mississippi River Valley. This should drop rain chances back somewhat as we go back to daily scattered showers and highs near 90.

Rainfall over the next five days through Thursday morning will be the highest across the northern third of Alabama due to the approach of the front on Wednesday. Rainfall will be patchy at best simply due to the nature of showers, but overall spots that do get rain could see around half an inch.

Looking out into voodoo country, we start week 2 with another passing trough moving through the Great Lakes region. But after that the GFS is very insistent on the development of an upper ridge over the Southeast US that should keep us fairly warm. The strength of the ridge suggest warm without becoming too hot.

Tropics: While tropical storm formation is not expected for the next several days, there is an area of disturbed weather centered about 700 miles west of the Azores in the Atlantic moving southwestward. This non-tropical low is not expected to develop much even though it is over relatively warm water.

Beach Forecast: Click here to see the AlabamaWx Beach Forecast Center page.

WeatherBrains: 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.

Thanks for tuning into the Weather Xtreme Video. The next Weather Xtreme Video should be posted here Sunday by 7 am or so. Enjoy the day and Godspeed.

-Brian-

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