Pattern Change Means Hotter Days Ahead
TODAY: The very moisture-rich air mass remains in place today and will continue to see scattered showers and storms. Though the greatest coverage of convection will come during the afternoon and evening hours, showers and storms are possible at anytime. Lightning and very intense rainfall are the main threat with storms today, so remember if you encounter flood waters, TURN AROUND, DON’T DROWN!!! Highs today will reach the upper 80s in most locations.
USA BRIEF: A weakening and nearly stalled frontal system along the eastern third of the U.S. will continue sending copious moisture north. Additional heavy rain on already saturated soils may produce flooding and flash flooding for portions of the east. In the West, a trough is moderating maritime temperatures, with dry gusty winds and isolated dry thunderstorms increasing fire weather threats elsewhere.
CRANKING UP THE HEAT: A ridge to the east begins to nudge west into Alabama over the weekend, and that means showers and storms will thin out a bit. For the upcoming weekend, it looks to be a standard summer weekend with scattered showers and storms on a daily basis, with a mix of sun and clouds. Highs look return to the lower 90s, with very humid afternoons and calm, muggy nights; lows will be the lower 70s for most locations.
INTO NEXT WEEK: By early next week, the upper ridge looks to strengthen across the area, so we start to talk about hot and humid weather returning to the state. We will maintain the daily threat of mainly afternoon, showers/storm with highs in the low to mid 90s. With the very humid conditions, we could see our heat index values climb to the century mark in many locations.
TROPICAL UPDATE: All is calm in the North Atlantic, Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico and tropical cyclone formation is not expected for the next five days. In a discussion yesterday, forecast models suggest wind shear will be unusually high in the Caribbean and Tropical Atlantic for much of the month, which looks to prevent tropical development in these areas for the foreseeable future.
Have a great day!
Ryan
