Digging Out Of The Freeze

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ANOTHER FRIGID MORNING: Yet another sub-freezing morning across out great state. Birmingham is at 21 degrees at 5:00, with most of our Skywatchers in the outlying areas in the teens. Vic Bell up in Etowah County reports 14 degrees. Since the observation at the Birmingham Airport did drop below 25 before midnight last night, that means we have now gone 12 consecutive days with a low below 25 degrees, something that has never happened here based on weather records going back to around 1880.

WARMER DAYS: Our promised warming trend begins this afternoon as we head into the upper 40s. We are forecasting mid 50s tomorrow and upper 50s Friday; some West Alabama communities could see 60 degrees Friday afternoon. We stay dry through Friday, although high clouds will be streaming in late in the week ahead of a developing storm system in the western Gulf of Mexico.

RAIN RETURNS SATURDAY: Periods of rain are likely statewide Saturday into Saturday night. The heaviest rain should be over the southern half of the state, where over 2 inches are possible. The latest model data hints at around 1 inch here, along the I-20 corridor. Seems like the most widespread rain could come from about 2:00 p.m. until 12:00 midnight Saturday. The rain should end early Sunday, with morning clouds Sunday giving way to a few peeks of sunshine Sunday afternoon. No really cold air involved with this storm system, but we will be a little cooler Sunday with a high in the upper 40s.

NEXT WEEK AND INTO VOODOO LAND: The first half of the week looks dry, but a vigorous, negative tilt short wave has the potential to bring a good round of rain and possible storms to Alabama on Thursday. Then, another very wet weather system shows up around January 24. Global models continue to paint a picture where very cold air could very well return to the Deep South as the month ends and February begins. We note Eagle, Alaska dropped to 55 degrees below zero yesterday morning; it is getting very cold again up in the source region.

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After a stop today at Chelsea Park Elementary School, I will be in the office early this afternoon, and the next Weather Xtreme video will be posted by 3:30 this afternoon. Enjoy the day!

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