Midday Nowcast: Warm and Muggy with Some Showers Possible through the Weekend
FINALLY FRIDAY: More clouds than sun and isolated showers continue to highlight our forecast today as it remains a dreary and misty day for many locations. Continued above average warmth and very humid, temperatures are in the upper 70s and lower and mid 80s.
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS: A few isolated showers are possible for the high football playoff games across Alabama tonight, but most stadiums will be dry. The sky will be mostly cloudy with temperatures falling through the 70s.
BIRMINGHAM ALMANAC: For November 8th, the average high for Birmingham is 67° and the average low is 45°. The record high is 85° set in 2022, while the record low is 24° set in 1971. We average 0.14” of precipitation on this date, and the record value is 2.73” set in 1911.
ACROSS THE USA: Widespread snow, with periods of heavy snowfall rates up to 1-2”/hour at times, and gusty winds will continue across New Mexico and eastern Colorado through tonight. Snow may linger in some areas through Saturday morning. Elevated fire-weather conditions are expected from southern New England into the Mid-Atlantic today. Red Flag Warnings are in effect.
WEEKEND WEATHER: The overall pattern won’t change much tomorrow and Sunday. If anything, our rain chances will increase some for the weekend and our forecast will feature scattered showers and some storms at times both tomorrow and Sunday, but again, rain distribution won’t be very even. The warm weather will persist as temperatures will remain in the upper 70s to lower 80s.
FOOTBALL WEATHER: Tomorrow UAB will host UConn at Protective Stadium in downtown Birmingham (1:30p CT kickoff); expect a mix of sun and clouds with a passing shower possible during the game. Temperatures will hover in the 78-81 degree range.
Alabama will be in Baton Rouge to take on LSU tomorrow night (6:30p CT kickoff). The sky will be cloudy with a few periods of rain possible during the game… temperatures will fall slowly through the 70s.
NEXT WEEK: Some showers linger for our Monday, but the weather trends drier for Tuesday and Wednesday with highs in the 70s and 80s, which continue to be well-above average for mid-November in Alabama. However, late Wednesday, a strong cold front will dive south. The front will bring the chance of rain and storms, and then much cooler weather for Thursday and Friday, lasting into next weekend; expect highs in the 60s, lows in the 40s.
HURRICANE RAFAEL: Rafael is moving toward the west near 9 mph. A slower west-northwestward motion is expected during the next day or so. After that, Rafael is likely to meander over the central Gulf of Mexico through early next week. Maximum sustained winds are near 110 mph with higher gusts. Steady weakening is expected during the next few days. Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 30 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 90 miles. The estimated minimum central pressure is 961 mb (28.38 inches).
Rafael will encounter strong winds aloft, dry air, and cooler sea surface temperatures, which allow for weakening, and we expect it to be sheared apart as we roll into early next week, and likely will not be an issue for the U.S. shore.
Also, in the Southwestern Atlantic, disorganized showers and thunderstorms continue in association with a trough of low pressure that extends from the central Caribbean Sea northeastward across Hispaniola and into the southwestern Atlantic. Some gradual development of this system is possible during the next couple of days while it moves westward near the Greater Antilles. Regardless of development, locally heavy rains are possible across the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, and the southeastern Bahamas through Saturday. Formation chance through 7 days…low…20 percent. The next name up is Sara.
WORLD TEMPERATURE EXTREMES: Over the last 24 hours, the highest observation outside the U.S. was 111.2F at Julia Creek, Australia. The lowest observation was -69.2F at Dome A, Antarctica.
CONTIGUOUS TEMPERATURE EXTREMES: Over the last 24 hours, the highest observation was 95F at Faith Ranch, TX. The lowest observation was -5F at Peter Sinks, UT.
Category: Alabama's Weather, ALL POSTS, Social Media, Tropical
About the Author (Author Profile)
Macon, Georgia Television Chief Meteorologist, Birmingham native, and long time Contributor on AlabamaWX. Stormchaser. I did not choose Weather, it chose Me. College Football Fanatic. @Ryan_StinnetSubscribe
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