Too Warm For April

An all new edition of the ABC 33/40 Weather Xtreme video is available in the player below. You can subscribe to the Weather Xtreme video on iTunes by clicking here.

NEAR RECORD LEVELS: Birmingham has soared to 86 degrees this afternoon, within two degrees of the record high for the date, 88 set in 1967. That is also 14 degrees above the average high of 72. The warmest spot in the state is Alexander City, with a summer-like 88 degrees. Sure seems like we have jumped from winter right to summer.

Tomorrow won’t be much different; lots of sun with a high in the mid 80s; upper 80s are possible in pockets over the eastern half of the state, close to the center of the upper ridge. The ridge begins to break down Wednesday, as clouds increase and highs drop back into the 70s.

OUR NEXT RAIN: Still looks like the main window for showers and storms will come from 2:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. Thursday. Considering the time of day, and the lack of instability and shear, the chance of a major severe weather problem looks rather small, and we are projecting around 1/2 inch of rain. Thursday will be much cooler with a high in the mid 60s.

FRIDAY: We begin the day with a low around 40 degrees, but the colder spots across the northern half of the state will get down into the mid 30s, with potential for some frost. Some of the coldest spots might even touch the freezing mark briefly, so growers will continue to need to monitor our temperature forecasts as the week rolls along. We warm into the upper 60s Friday afternoon with sunshine back in full supply.

WEEKEND PEEK: Looks like a wonderful weekend ahead, with sunny days and clear nights. The high on Saturday and Sunday will be in the mid 70s, with lows down in the 40s.

NEXT WEEK: The GFS suggests the next round of showers and storms will come Tuesday night or Wednesday, but the upper support passes well to the north, and once again a major severe weather threat is not expected.

WEATHER BRAINS: Don’t forget you can listen to our weekly 30 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. You can even listen here on the blog; look for the player on the top left. Last week’s Guest WeatherBrains was author Eric Pinder. Is book Life at the Top is a fascinating account of what it’s like to work atop Mount Washington in New Hampshire. Our very own Ashley Brand joined the panel for a fun show. This week, Jeff Lazo from NCAR will talk about the societal impacts of weather and how meteorologists are using the power of social scientists to improve their forecasts and the warning process. This week’s show will be recorded tomorrow night.

FOLLOW ALONG: Here are our weather team Twitter accounts….

I had a great time today visiting with the kindergarten kids at Coldwater Elementary in Calhoun County… be watching for them on the Pepsi KIDCAM today at 5:00 on ABC 33/40 News! The next Weather Xtreme video will be posted by 7:00 a.m. tomorrow…

Category: Uncategorized