Rain continues to slowly spread into Alabama from the west and NW tonight. So far, rain in Central Alabama has been scattered and light. The rain is more general over the Extreme West and NW part of the state.
The rain has been heavier in parts of Mississippi and Tennessee. Exmples:
MISSISSIPPI
0.82 in Tupelo
1.47 in McComb
3.14 at Jackson Airport
0.36 in Meridian
TENNESSEE
0.93 in Memphis
0.98 in West Memphis
1.57 in Selmer
1.07 in Nashville
1.27 in Clarksville
We probably will not get amounts like that. Most of our rain will come later tonight through Thursday morning.
Because of extensive cloudiness and early showers, the high temperature over NW Alabama was lower today. For example:
77 in Muscle Shoals
80 in Huntsville
No 100-degree heat today.
Anniston still has not reached the century mark so far this year...
Alabama Tonight--9:30 Report
July 5, 2006, 9:35 pmIntern Drew's Great Plains Storm Chase... Continued...
July 5, 2006, 6:10 pm
The trip starts to wind down . . .
Our chasing days were over. We had taken one last shot, and it hadn't worked out. Once we got back to Elk City I was kind of glad that the chasing was all over. Maybe I wouldn't have felt that way if we'd been in the thick of things for two straight weeks, but that was the furthest thing from the truth. It was good to know that there would be no more waiting in sweltering hot parks, and all that we had left was a little more sightseeing and a little relaxation.
The Elk City Holidome was a pretty cool place. I felt like I was back in the 80's when I walked in, but it was still nice. We didn't take advantage of the indoor putt-putt immediately, as we were hungry. Once we all got back from dinner I was really hoping to get to hang out in the pool/hot tub area, but as had been the case for most of the trip, we didn't get back in time to take advantage of it.
We did get to take advantage of the putt-putt the next morning, though. It was an epic battle. My friends Jason, Dominic, and I played a round and though there were three of us, it didn't take long for the chase for the championship to come down to Jason and I. It was close the whole time, and at the end of 18 holes, we were tied. That didn't last long, though, as I missed an easy putt on the first playoff hole and lost by one stroke.
After putt-putt and breakfast we headed towards Oklahoma City, which would be our last overnight stop of the trip. The trip was fairly short and uneventful. We didn't have any rogue supercells pop up to tempt us to chase one more time. When we got to Oklahoma City we headed straight for somewhere I never thought I woud ever see: the Oklahoma City Memorial.
Drew McCombs
ABC 33/40 Weather Intern
abc3340wx2@gmail.com
Our chasing days were over. We had taken one last shot, and it hadn't worked out. Once we got back to Elk City I was kind of glad that the chasing was all over. Maybe I wouldn't have felt that way if we'd been in the thick of things for two straight weeks, but that was the furthest thing from the truth. It was good to know that there would be no more waiting in sweltering hot parks, and all that we had left was a little more sightseeing and a little relaxation.
The Elk City Holidome was a pretty cool place. I felt like I was back in the 80's when I walked in, but it was still nice. We didn't take advantage of the indoor putt-putt immediately, as we were hungry. Once we all got back from dinner I was really hoping to get to hang out in the pool/hot tub area, but as had been the case for most of the trip, we didn't get back in time to take advantage of it.
We did get to take advantage of the putt-putt the next morning, though. It was an epic battle. My friends Jason, Dominic, and I played a round and though there were three of us, it didn't take long for the chase for the championship to come down to Jason and I. It was close the whole time, and at the end of 18 holes, we were tied. That didn't last long, though, as I missed an easy putt on the first playoff hole and lost by one stroke.
After putt-putt and breakfast we headed towards Oklahoma City, which would be our last overnight stop of the trip. The trip was fairly short and uneventful. We didn't have any rogue supercells pop up to tempt us to chase one more time. When we got to Oklahoma City we headed straight for somewhere I never thought I woud ever see: the Oklahoma City Memorial.
Drew McCombs
ABC 33/40 Weather Intern
abc3340wx2@gmail.com
by James Spann
in General Thoughts
Late Afternoon Look at Alabama--5:40 pm Report
July 5, 2006, 5:46 pm
Showers and thunderstorms continue to spread into West Alabama from Mississippi late this afternoon. Most of the western border counties in Alabama were getting showers.
The heaviest rain was over NW Marion County in NW Alabama.
Scattered thunderstorms were also across South central Alabama from Wilcox County NE to the Montgomery area.
Also some storms over North Clay and Cleburne County in Extreme east Alabama.
Evereything moving east.
Don't be surprised to hear of some one-inch rainfall amounts for parts of Alabama between now and mid-day Thursday.
The heaviest rain was over NW Marion County in NW Alabama.
Scattered thunderstorms were also across South central Alabama from Wilcox County NE to the Montgomery area.
Also some storms over North Clay and Cleburne County in Extreme east Alabama.
Evereything moving east.
Don't be surprised to hear of some one-inch rainfall amounts for parts of Alabama between now and mid-day Thursday.
A Nice Weather Change
July 5, 2006, 3:38 pm
The Wednesday afternoon map discussion video is on the web, and available via iTunes:
http://www.jamesspann.com/
Check out these 3:00 p.m. temperatures:
Muscle Shoals 76
Birmingham 87
Calera (Shelby County Airport) 88
Tuscaloosa 91
Anniston 91
In recent days, most spots were somewhere between 95 and 100 at this hour. A very nice change. Clouds and showers are helping to keep a lid on the heat today; and we will maintain a good chance of showers and storms tonight into tomorrow morning as a "cold" front moves into North Alabama.
Looks like the window for rain will be closing around midday tomorrow as drier air begins to move into the state from the north. Between now and midday tomorrow, there is a reasonable chance most spots will see one-half inch of rain. Some places a little more, some a little less.
Temperatures tomorrow should remain comfortable; the GFS is showing a high of 84 and the NAM is at 86. Both models suggest the best chance of rain will come during the morning hours.
FRIDAY-SATURDAY: Both days should feature a good supply of sunshine with lower humidity and cooler nights. The surface front will be moving through the far southern part of Alabama, and should reach the northern Gulf by the beginning of the weekend.
TROPICAL ISSUES? As I have discussed here for several days, we will watch the old front in the northern Gulf this weekend for any sign of a tropical depression forming in the region. Best possible scenario is for a depression to form just offshore, and then it moves north through Alabama bringing a soaking rain. But, that is not a forecast... just something that is possible.
One way or another, moist air should move back into Alabama early next week with at least a chance of afternoon showers and storms.
LONG RANGE: No sign of any runaway heat through much of July according to the GFS; everything looks "normal", that would suggest highs in the low 90s, early morning lows around 70, and an almost daily risk of an afternoon shower or storm. The most intense heat seems to be over the western half of the nation.
NEW SKYCAM SITE: Our new SKYCAM in Jasper is operational; we should have it on the web shortly:
http://www.abc3340.com/static/skycams/skycamsmain.html
SKYCAMs will be coming online within the next few weeks in Cullman, Clanton, and Gulf Shores as we continue to build the network.
RADAR: Had a problem with our Pinpoint Doppler Radar up on Double Oak Mountain earlier today, but thanks to Ron Thomas and Gary Watkins of our engineering staff we are back in full operation.
I will have the next map discussion video ready by 7:00 a.m. tomorrow!
http://www.jamesspann.com/
Check out these 3:00 p.m. temperatures:
Muscle Shoals 76
Birmingham 87
Calera (Shelby County Airport) 88
Tuscaloosa 91
Anniston 91
In recent days, most spots were somewhere between 95 and 100 at this hour. A very nice change. Clouds and showers are helping to keep a lid on the heat today; and we will maintain a good chance of showers and storms tonight into tomorrow morning as a "cold" front moves into North Alabama.
Looks like the window for rain will be closing around midday tomorrow as drier air begins to move into the state from the north. Between now and midday tomorrow, there is a reasonable chance most spots will see one-half inch of rain. Some places a little more, some a little less.
Temperatures tomorrow should remain comfortable; the GFS is showing a high of 84 and the NAM is at 86. Both models suggest the best chance of rain will come during the morning hours.
FRIDAY-SATURDAY: Both days should feature a good supply of sunshine with lower humidity and cooler nights. The surface front will be moving through the far southern part of Alabama, and should reach the northern Gulf by the beginning of the weekend.
TROPICAL ISSUES? As I have discussed here for several days, we will watch the old front in the northern Gulf this weekend for any sign of a tropical depression forming in the region. Best possible scenario is for a depression to form just offshore, and then it moves north through Alabama bringing a soaking rain. But, that is not a forecast... just something that is possible.
One way or another, moist air should move back into Alabama early next week with at least a chance of afternoon showers and storms.
LONG RANGE: No sign of any runaway heat through much of July according to the GFS; everything looks "normal", that would suggest highs in the low 90s, early morning lows around 70, and an almost daily risk of an afternoon shower or storm. The most intense heat seems to be over the western half of the nation.
NEW SKYCAM SITE: Our new SKYCAM in Jasper is operational; we should have it on the web shortly:
http://www.abc3340.com/static/skycams/skycamsmain.html
SKYCAMs will be coming online within the next few weeks in Cullman, Clanton, and Gulf Shores as we continue to build the network.
RADAR: Had a problem with our Pinpoint Doppler Radar up on Double Oak Mountain earlier today, but thanks to Ron Thomas and Gary Watkins of our engineering staff we are back in full operation.
I will have the next map discussion video ready by 7:00 a.m. tomorrow!
Three Cheers For Rain--3 o'clock Report
July 5, 2006, 3:06 pm
Showers were fairly numerous atmid-afternoon across the Tennessee Valley of North Alabama. Also over Dekalb, Cherokee and Cleburne County in NE Alabama.
Showers and thunderstorms even more numerous over Mississippi--especially the East Central and South part. Everything moving east.
To the NW, a line of showers and thunderstorms extended from Little Rock to Nashville. These storms were along a "cold" front slowly pushing toward the SE.
All of these ingredients should spell our best chance of rain in a long time.
Keep cheering for the storms.
Showers and thunderstorms even more numerous over Mississippi--especially the East Central and South part. Everything moving east.
To the NW, a line of showers and thunderstorms extended from Little Rock to Nashville. These storms were along a "cold" front slowly pushing toward the SE.
All of these ingredients should spell our best chance of rain in a long time.
Keep cheering for the storms.
Showers Entering Our Picture--1 o'clock Report
July 5, 2006, 1:02 pm
We are still on track for our best chance of showers and thunderstorms in quite some time.
At 1 o'clock this afternoon, moderate to heavy showers over South Tennessee had developed southward into Extreme North Alabama. Especially from Huntsville westward to Florence and down into Colbert and North Franklin County.
The rain-cooled temperature was only 73 in Muscle Shoals early this afternoon.
Showers and thunderstorms were increasing across Mississippi.
Lighter showers were over Central Hale County in West Central Alabama.
Everything moving west to east.
At 1 o'clock this afternoon, moderate to heavy showers over South Tennessee had developed southward into Extreme North Alabama. Especially from Huntsville westward to Florence and down into Colbert and North Franklin County.
The rain-cooled temperature was only 73 in Muscle Shoals early this afternoon.
Showers and thunderstorms were increasing across Mississippi.
Lighter showers were over Central Hale County in West Central Alabama.
Everything moving west to east.
Bring On The Showers
July 5, 2006, 5:53 am
The Wednesday morning map discussion video is on the web, and available on iTunes:
http://www.jamesspann.com/
Wow... just checked my rain gauge here (at my home in North Shelby County); we had 0.63" last night between 9:00 and midnight thanks to that nice batch of showers that moved across the Birmingham metro area. Some spots in eastern Tuscaloosa County around Vance saw over two inches. Let the parade of showers begin.
The GFS is advertising our best chance of showers and storms from about 1:00 p.m. today through 12:00 noon tomorrow. A nice trio showing up; surface front approaching from the north; deep tropical moisture slipping in here from the west, and an upper trough aloft forming overhead with cooler air aloft. I have to stress rainfall amounts will vary a good bit from neighborhood to neighborhood, but average rain amounts of 1/2 to 1 inch are likely. Some spots might see a little more, others a little less.
With the increase in clouds and showers, temperatures will trend downward. Highs today and tomorrow should be in the 86 to 91 degree range for most spots.
Drier air begins to move into North Alabama tomorrow afternoon, and there is some hint the best chance of showers and storms will shift south of I-20 by afternoon. By Friday we should expect a good supply of sunshine with lower humidity levels.
THE WEEKEND: For now the weather looks rain-free for the northern half of Alabama; afternoon temperatures should peak in the low 90s, with mid 60s during the early morning hours.
Moist air will return early next week, however, and scattered showers and storms will be possible by Monday and Tuesday, mainly during the afternoon and evening hours.
TROPICAL ISSUES: Interesting swirl showing up this morning southeast of Miami. That is an upper low; we will watch that feature. It should be picked up by the developing upper trough over the eastern U.S., but there is some chance it might stay underneath the trough with the system meandering into the southeast Gulf of Mexico. And, we will watch the old surface front over the weekend as it gets into the northern Gulf waters. Old fronts in the northern Gulf can be a great spot for tropical depression formation this time of the year.
LONG RANGE: Could the worst of the summer heat be over? That is a pretty outrageous statement since this is only early July, but an interesting idea. We have already experienced some triple digit heat, but the GFS is suggesting the worst of the heat for the rest of the month will be over the central and western part of the nation. Around here, the heat looks "normal", meaning highs in the low 90s and an almost daily chance of afternoon showers and storms. If we can see a good increase in top soil moisture in the next two weeks, then we might not see a triple digit threat again. But, that is just an idea, not a forecast...
JOIN THE PARTY: Check out our new "social weather network" site, WeatherParty.com:
http://www.weatherparty.com/
Lots of very interesting weather news there... users submit links to weather images, products, or stories; and you vote on them and determine what shows up on the front page. Drop by, register, submit some cool links, and vote on the links others have submitted (you can vote on your own links too
.
LIVE RADAR: Don't forget we have our Pinpoint Doppler Radar available on our live stream anytime... just click on the streaming button on the upper right part of our main weather page:
http://www.abc3340.com/weather/
You can right click over the video and put it in the Real Player, allowing you to make the video any size you want, even full screen.
We streamed the fireworks shows last night at 9:00... we had a great view of the show on Red Mountain, and the one down in Demopolis on the Tombigbee River!
I will have the next map discussion video posted by 3:30 this afternoon...
http://www.jamesspann.com/
Wow... just checked my rain gauge here (at my home in North Shelby County); we had 0.63" last night between 9:00 and midnight thanks to that nice batch of showers that moved across the Birmingham metro area. Some spots in eastern Tuscaloosa County around Vance saw over two inches. Let the parade of showers begin.
The GFS is advertising our best chance of showers and storms from about 1:00 p.m. today through 12:00 noon tomorrow. A nice trio showing up; surface front approaching from the north; deep tropical moisture slipping in here from the west, and an upper trough aloft forming overhead with cooler air aloft. I have to stress rainfall amounts will vary a good bit from neighborhood to neighborhood, but average rain amounts of 1/2 to 1 inch are likely. Some spots might see a little more, others a little less.
With the increase in clouds and showers, temperatures will trend downward. Highs today and tomorrow should be in the 86 to 91 degree range for most spots.
Drier air begins to move into North Alabama tomorrow afternoon, and there is some hint the best chance of showers and storms will shift south of I-20 by afternoon. By Friday we should expect a good supply of sunshine with lower humidity levels.
THE WEEKEND: For now the weather looks rain-free for the northern half of Alabama; afternoon temperatures should peak in the low 90s, with mid 60s during the early morning hours.
Moist air will return early next week, however, and scattered showers and storms will be possible by Monday and Tuesday, mainly during the afternoon and evening hours.
TROPICAL ISSUES: Interesting swirl showing up this morning southeast of Miami. That is an upper low; we will watch that feature. It should be picked up by the developing upper trough over the eastern U.S., but there is some chance it might stay underneath the trough with the system meandering into the southeast Gulf of Mexico. And, we will watch the old surface front over the weekend as it gets into the northern Gulf waters. Old fronts in the northern Gulf can be a great spot for tropical depression formation this time of the year.
LONG RANGE: Could the worst of the summer heat be over? That is a pretty outrageous statement since this is only early July, but an interesting idea. We have already experienced some triple digit heat, but the GFS is suggesting the worst of the heat for the rest of the month will be over the central and western part of the nation. Around here, the heat looks "normal", meaning highs in the low 90s and an almost daily chance of afternoon showers and storms. If we can see a good increase in top soil moisture in the next two weeks, then we might not see a triple digit threat again. But, that is just an idea, not a forecast...
JOIN THE PARTY: Check out our new "social weather network" site, WeatherParty.com:
http://www.weatherparty.com/
Lots of very interesting weather news there... users submit links to weather images, products, or stories; and you vote on them and determine what shows up on the front page. Drop by, register, submit some cool links, and vote on the links others have submitted (you can vote on your own links too
.LIVE RADAR: Don't forget we have our Pinpoint Doppler Radar available on our live stream anytime... just click on the streaming button on the upper right part of our main weather page:
http://www.abc3340.com/weather/
You can right click over the video and put it in the Real Player, allowing you to make the video any size you want, even full screen.
We streamed the fireworks shows last night at 9:00... we had a great view of the show on Red Mountain, and the one down in Demopolis on the Tombigbee River!
I will have the next map discussion video posted by 3:30 this afternoon...
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