WBRC Weather

Showers Friday...Storms Next Week

A weak, slow moving front pushing through the state today will bring us a very slight chance of a shower or two.  A better chance of rain will come tomorrow.  Look for a 60-percent chance of showers Friday.  We could see some thunderstorms tomorrow too, but nothing severe is expected. 

Enough moisture will hang around for another slight chance of rain on Saturday.  Sunday looks to be partly cloudy and warm.

On Monday evening a stronger storm system will give us the possibility of severe weather.  We are still several days out, but at this point forecast models indicate there will be enough instability, moisture and lift to bring about damaging winds and large hail.  Be sure to monitor further updates with this system as we get closer to Monday.

Hope you have a great day today!

Mickey Ferguson, FOX6 Weather

Watching Heavy Storms North of Alabama

We wanted to share this radar update from VIPIR. It looks like the storms over Kentucky and West Virginia are producing some incredible lightning. A very large severe thunderstorm watch box has been issued for both states through 8 PM. 

Wes Wyatt-Fox 6 Meteorologist

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Wednesday PM Discussion-A Few Isolated Showers Tomorrow

(The GFS Model Valid For Friday Evening suggests a good coverage of showers and thunderstorms.)

This afternoon temperatures have once again broke the 80-degree threshold but it is feeling a bit warmer than the past two days. Rising dewpoints have brought a slight increase in the mugginess across the area. At this time we’re monitoring a cold front that is draped from Missouri northeast into West Virginia. Some heavy storms have developed in response to this front over Kentucky and West Virginia. As expected the storms are tracking south and we’re forecasting them to weaken before reaching Alabama. The actual front will continue southward and stall to our north tomorrow. A few isolated showers may try to develop tomorrow, especially over our northern communities. Otherwise, we will have a partly sunny sky, with another very warm afternoon.

Friday/Saturday: We’re still expecting some unsettled weather starting on Friday as an upper level disturbance approaches Alabama. Models suggest that as temperatures warm and instability increases we will have a good chance for storm and rainfall development by Friday afternoon. There will also be a good chance for a passing thunderstorm or some rain Friday night and on Saturday. We expect the rainfall on Saturday to be scattered in nature but there will be a good coverage of storms. Also, any storms that develop will be slow movers capable of producing some heavy downpours. The good news is that we don’t see severe weather ingredients coming together.

Monday/Tuesday:   The weather will be drier on Sunday thanks to some ridging overhead. We expect a partly sunny sky, with only a stray shower possible to the east. By Monday a stronger-more organized low pressure system will be impacting the Midwest. This system is forecasted to send a cold front our way Monday night. This should bring us a chance of rain and thunderstorms late Monday and into Tuesday followed by some cooler temperatures. Early temperature guidance shows freezing temperatures as far south as Tennessee. As for our area, we’re forecasting upper 40s for next Wednesday morning.

Wes Wyatt-Fox 6 Meteorologist

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Warm and Breezy

Look for partly cloudy skies this afternoon, highs again in the low 80s, but a little more wind.  Winds are expected at 10-15 mph out of the southwest this afternoon. 
On Thursday a weak frontal boundary is poised to move through our state.  With our atmosphere being so dry of late, expect only a 10-percent chance of rainfall with this system.
Friday into Saturday our chance of rain increased to 30-to-40 percent as a secondary cold front comes through our area.

Sunday through next Tuesday look for variably cloudy skies along with a slight chance of isolated showers each day.

Mickey Ferguson, FOX6 Weather

A Tuesday Time-Lapse-Birmingham Sunset

Check out this amazing sunset time-lapse from our Red Mountain Tower Camera.

Join us tonight at 9PM for another forecast update, I will be sharing some updated microcast data.

Wes Wyatt-Fox 6 Meteorologist

Follow Me on Twitter@weswyattweather

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Tuesday PM Discussion-Another Comfy Evening

No complaints in the weather center this evening as the stretch of gorgeous spring weather rolls on. You can expect another perfect night for an evening walk after supper time. Temperatures will be tumbling into the low 70s during the evening hours, with a mostly clear sky overhead.

Tomorrow we will start to see a few changes in the setup across the region. High pressure will slide east of Alabama, with a southerly flow bringing a slight increase in moisture levels. A cold front will drop in from the north tomorrow night and this will be a weakening system so we don’t expect a major change. You can expect more clouds late tomorrow, with a sprinkle or two possible over our northeast counties tomorrow night and early Thursday.

Some upper level instability will set the stage for partly to mostly cloudy skies on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Conditions will also become favorable for scattered thunderstorms and showers. Although we don’t expect a steady rain for this three day stretch, any storms that develop could produce heavy downpours.

Next Week: Long range data now shows a strong low pressure system impacting the nation on Monday. This large low pressure system looks to make a track from the Central Plains into the Midwest Monday night. As for Alabama, we expect a good chance of rain and thunderstorms late Monday through Tuesday morning followed by a slight cool down on Tuesday.

Join us tonight for more details on Fox 6 news, starting at 5:00 PM.

Wes Wyatt-Fox 6 Meteorologist

Follow Me on Twitter@weswyattweather

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Partly Cloudy and Warm

Our unseasonably warm air continues.  A few more clouds are headed our way today.  Under partly cloudy skies, look for highs in the low 80s.
Partly cloudy skies will likely stay with us through Wednesday and maybe Thursday too.  On Thursday, a weak frontal boundary is expected to push through our state give us a very slight chance of showers.
Better rain chances are headed our way by Saturday, along with scattered showers through next week.

Mickey Ferguson, FOX6 Weather

NWS Announces Additional Storm Spotting Courses

John De Block with the National Weather Service sent us the following message today about additional storm spotting courses:

Due to the success of our experimental online classes this Spring, we have decided to add 3 more online Basic SKYWARN Storm Spotter classes to the calendar.  With the technology available to us, it is now feasible for us to offer classes through the heart of the season to those that missed out before Spring.

Here is the schedule:

Monday, April 9th at 6 pm
Tuesday, April 17th at  6 pm
Tuesday, April 24th at 630 pm 

To register for the classes, just go to the SKYWARN page on our website at http://www.srh.noaa.gov/bmx/?n=skywarnschedule.

Pollen Forecast-Get Ready For More Tree Pollen

Tuscaloosa Fire and Rescue shared this picture today and this tells the story, for at-least the next two days. Tree pollen levels will remain in the very high to extreme categories through Thursday.

Wes Wyatt-Fox 6 Meteorologist

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Monday Evening Forecast Discussion-Sunny and Less Humid

We’re currently enjoying a picture perfect setup across Alabama thanks to a high pressure ridge centered near St. Louis. The air is a bit drier and this is also making it feel very comfortable. Look for the nice weather to continue through tonight and tomorrow. Lows will be in the middle 50s tonight, with highs reaching the middle 80s tomorrow. We should have another great night for viewing the celestial conjunction of Venus, Jupiter, and the Crescent Moon.

Looking ahead: The high pressure ridge will shift east by Wednesday and this will bring an increase in moisture as a southerly flow returns. You may start to notice a more humid feel to the air as you take that afternoon walk. There will also be more clouds around during the afternoon and early evening hours. By Thursday afternoon a stray shower or thunderstorm could develop as temperatures warm. Our next best chance of rain will arrives during the Friday-Saturday timeframe as an upper level disturbance tracks across the state. This system will bring a lot more cloud cover along with some scattered thunderstorms and showers.

Wes Wyatt-Fox 6 Meteorologist

Follow Me on Twitter@weswyattweather

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