More Rain and Storms Today
For today, the weather remains unsettled with scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms expected as a surface front approaches from the northwest. We should see a few peeks of sun today, but the sky should remain mainly cloudy and highs should be in the mid to upper 80s, depending on the amount of sun.
TROPICAL STORM DORIAN: At 500 AM AST, the center of Tropical Storm Dorian was located near latitude 13.5 North, longitude 60.7 West. Dorian is moving toward the west-northwest near 13 mph and this motion is expected to continue through tonight, followed by a turn toward the northwest on Wednesday. On the forecast track, the center of Dorian is expected to move across the Windward Islands and into the eastern Caribbean Sea during the next several hours. Dorian is forecast to pass near or south of Puerto Rico on Wednesday, move near or over eastern Hispaniola Wednesday night, and move north of Hispaniola on Thursday. Maximum sustained winds remain near 50 mph with higher gusts. Slow strengthening is forecast during the next 48 hours, and Dorian is forecast to be near hurricane strength when it moves close to Puerto Rico and eastern Hispaniola. The estimated minimum central pressure is 1005 mb (29.68 inches).
Also in the tropics, we have Tropical Depression Six which should become Erin later today. At 500 AM EDT, the center of Tropical Depression Six was
located near latitude 31.0 North, longitude 71.6 West. The depression is drifting toward the southeast near 2 mph, and is expected to move little through tonight, then accelerate northward Wednesday to northeastward Thursday through Saturday. Maximum sustained winds remain near 35 mph with higher gusts. Some strengthening is expected and the cyclone is forecast to become a tropical storm later tonight. The estimated minimum central pressure is 1010 mb (29.83 inches).
MIDWEEK FRONT: The front pushes into Alabama late tonight, and drier air filters into the northern counties of the state during the day Wednesday. The best chance of rain tomorrow will be over the southern half of Alabama. For northern portions of the state, the sky will be mainly sunny with highs around 90°. Then Thursday will be a delightful day with ample sunshine and low humidity; the morning will be refreshing for late August, as lows early Thursday morning should be down in the 60s. The high Thursday afternoon should be near 90°. Thursday night will be another delightful night with lows back into the 60s and Friday will once again see highs near 90°. Moisture begins to return to extreme South Alabama Friday, where showers are possible, but the northern two-thirds of the state will stay dry with a good supply of sunshine.
LABOR DAY WEEKEND: Moisture levels will continue to rise rolling into the weekend and you will feel those higher humidity over the weekend. Scattered showers and storms will return to the forecast Saturday afternoon, with the best chance for rain over the southern counties of the state, but look for those showers and storms to return for the rest of us Sunday and Monday. No “washout”, but know the afternoon and evening hours will feature those random, scattered showers and storms from time to time. Highs over the weekend will range from the upper 80s to lower 90s. Also by late this weekend, Dorian could possibly impact our forecasts, so changes could certainly be made in the coming days depending on what Dorian does, but still a lot of time to watch this system.
REST OF NEXT WEEK: Once again, the early part of the week depends on what Dorian does, but for the most part, the first week of September looks pretty routine with partly to mostly sunny days and the daily risk of scattered, mostly afternoon and evening showers and thunderstorms. Highs will be generally in the lower 90s, which is pretty close to average for the early September.
Have a great day!
Ryan
