Friday Morning Weather Briefing Video: A Wet Start to 2024

It’s hard to believe that 2023 is coming to an end. It’s a year that saw all kinds of amazing weather and horrible disasters, like the Rolling Fork Tornado in March and the terrible fire on Maui. There was 26” of rain in Fort Lauderdale in 24 hours in April, tremendous heat across Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi during the summer, and Hurricane Otis exploded into a category 5 monster in hours before striking Acapulco. We saw the first major hurricane to strike the Florida Big Bend area, part of an active Atlantic Hurricane Season that was otherwise pretty easy on the U.S. Here in Alabama, we had the January tornado in Selma and in Autauga County and even saw smoke from the Canadian wildfires, which obliterated their records for acres burned, while the U.S. wildfire season was pretty tame. I wonder what we will see in 2024. You can bet It will be interesting.

FLAKY FRIDAY: The New Year’s Eve weekend is starting off with a minor bang with a few snowflakes flying here and there across North Alabama thanks to the colder temperatures aloft associated with an upper low over Central Kentucky this morning. The lift is being provided by an area of stronger positive vorticity that is swinging across North Alabama. Skies are mostly cloudy across much of North and Central Alabama, especially along and north of I-20. Clouds should continue to increase during the day and sunshine will eventually be scarce. A few scattered light showers are ongoing this morning across the northern half of the state. A few of them are predominantly snow, and a few are mixed with or are all rain. They should changeover to all rain except over Northeast Alabama during the morning as temperatures rise into the lower 40s. Rain and snow will increase in coverage over western and Middle Tennessee by this evening, and some of that will work into our northernmost counties. But it will weaken as it pushes southeast, so the best chances for any accumulations of around ¼ inch will be of North and Northeast Alabama in places like Double Springs, Moulton, Decatur, Athens, Huntsville, Albertville, Scottsboro, Fort Payne, and Cedar Bluff. Highs across the area will range from 42-43F across the Tennessee Valley, to 45-47F across North Central Alabama to around 50F at Montgomery. Lows tonight will generally be within a degree or two of freezing. The high country up around Jackson County could see a snow shower Saturday morning, but by then, it will all be over but the shouting.

ANY SUN FOR SATURDAY? Mostly cloudy on Saturday still, except for areas near and south of US-80 that might see a little more sunshine. Draw a line down O-22 and US-80 and everything northeast will probably struggle to get out of the 40s, while areas to the southwest will top out in the lower 50s.

NEW YEAR’S EVE: The last day of 2023 sill start off mostly sunny, but clouds will increase by afternoon. High temperatures will be in the middle 50s North with upper 50s to near 60F across Central Alabama. During the evening hours, showers will break out of Arkansas and Northeast Texas and progress eastward into Mississippi and Louisiana. The rain should reach western Alabama after 3 a.m., meaning that your celebrations and that midnight kiss will not be hampered by any wet weather. Lows Sunday night will be in the middle and upper 30s.

A WET START TO 2024: A cold front will push through Alabama on Monday, pushing a line of showers with it. Right now, the rainfall doesn’t look heavy. Most everyone will see rain, but amounts will range from 0.10 to 0.30 inches. Highs will be in the upper 40s North and lower and middle 50s Central.

MIDWEEK: Tuesday and Wednesday will be dry thanks to high pressure that will take over the Deep South. But rain will overtake Alabama for late Wednesday night and much of Thursday. 40s and 59s will be wild both days for highs. Lows will be near freezing.

FAST MOVING SYSTEM: Friday looks dry for much of Alabama, but a fast-moving low along the northern Gulf Coast will bring rain to the southern of the state Friday night into early Saturday. Sunday and Monday look dry as a big surface high sets up over the Southeast.

PATTERN shift: Seems we have been in this persistent troffy pattern across the southeastern United States. By Tuesday the 9th, the big ridge will be set up off the South Atlantic coast as we will feel a deep southerly fetch of warmer, moist air. By the 10th and 11th, our temperatures will be running some 20-25 degrees above normal if the GFS is right. Could I interest you in some highs in the lower 70s? Yes, please! But with the warmth will come the chance for rain, and while Tuesday and Wednesday look dry, Wednesday night and Thursday should feature rain AND thunderstorms. The system has a significant severe weather look to it for Wednesday night the 11th across Southeast Texas and a lesser version of that threat should impact Alabama late Wednesday night into early Thursday. The subtropical ridge to the east will manage to stall the front over Alabama and a second wave will develop a surface low that will track just to the west and northwest of us on Friday night the 12th with another wave of storms. It looks like the epicenter for strong storms could be western Alabama that Friday night.

FLIP SIDE OF THAT SYSTEM looks like it will produce some snow from eastern Texas and Oklahoma across Arkansas, Missouri, and into the Great Lakes states. The rain will be ending on Saturday morning the 13th and it will turn cooler, just in time for the one year anniversary remembrance of the Selma Tornado which struck on January 13, 2024.

SPECIAL EVENT: The NWS in Birmingham will be holding a special one-year anniversary event for residents of Selma on Saturday, January 13th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at ArtsRevive at 3 Church Street in Selma. A mosaic dedicated to those impacted by the storm. Various agencies will be in attendance with preparedness items for free. Residents can tell their stories, learn, prepare, and enjoy some refreshments.

BOWL WEATHER: Auburn takes on Maryland in the Music City Bowl in Nashville Saturday afternoon. A little light snow is in the forecast today and tonight but the best chance for accumulation will be east of Nashville on the Plateau. 40s today, 30s tonight and upper 40s Saturday afternoon as a little sunshine returns for the game. Alabama plays in the Rose Bowl Monday afternoon to take on Michigan. There will be a little rain in the Los Angeles area Saturday night, Sunday night, and early Monday, but the rain will be gone well before game time. Daytime temperatures will be in the lower and middle 60s, which is a couple of degrees below normal. Nighttime lows will be in the upper 40s.

BEACHCAST: Dry through early Monday along the beautiful beaches of Alabama and Northwest Florida. Rain will be likely Monday, and again Wednesday. More rain next Saturday night and Sunday. Water temperatures are in the lower 60s. Air temperatures will be in the 50s warming into the 60s over the weekend into early next week. The weekend will be chilly with lows in the 30s. The end of the week will be cooler, with highs in the 50s and lows in the lower 40s. The rip current risk will be low to moderate through New Year’s Day.
Click here to see the Beach Forecast Center page.

DANCING WITH THE STATS: Newark NJ established a new record rainfall for December 28th with 1.47 inches of rain.

ADVERTISE WITH US: Deliver your message to a highly engaged audience by advertising on the AlabamaWX.com website. We have a lot of big plans for this year. Don’t miss out! We can customize a creative, flexible, and affordable package that will suit your organization’s needs. Contact me, Bill Murray, at (205) 687-0782 and let’s talk.

WEATHERBRAINS: One of my favorite episodes of all time as Tom Skilling, the incomparable meteorologist who has graced the airways at WGN in Chicago. Check out the show at www.WeatherBrains.com. You can also subscribe on iTunes. You can watch the show live on our new YouTube channel for the show.You will be able to see the show on the James Spann 24×7 weather channel on cable or directly over the air on the dot 2 feed.

ON THIS DATE IN 1894: The town of Frostproof, Florida was incorporated in 1886. Local real estate developers, intent on attracing citrus farmers to the area, lobbied to have the twon named Frostproof. While popular opinion favored another name, the real estate agent who volunteered to deliver the towns official application to the U.S. Postal Service changed the application to read Frostproof. Frostproof was anything but, and a devastating freeze affected the area on this date, causing severe damage to agricultural interests across much of the state. Another bad freeze occurred the following February and was followed by another a couple of years later. The town petitioned to have its name changed, but it would be changed back in 1906 and is still called Frostproof today. Follow my weather history tweets on Twitter. I am @wxhistorian at Twitter.com.

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