Some Light Rain Friday; Much Cooler Saturday : The Alabama Weather Blog

WARM, HAZY OCTOBER AFTERNOON: Temperatures are in the low to mid 80s over the northern 2/3 of Alabama this afternoon… with upper 80s near the coast. The sky is hazy, partially due to smoke in the higher part of the atmosphere from Canadian wildfires. No rain on radar, and the sky will stay mostly fair tonight with lows mostly in the 60s.

The weather will stay warm and dry tomorrow, but a cold front will pass through the state Friday. The sky will be occasionally cloudy, and we will mention the potential for showers, but with limited moisture and dynamic support beneficial rain isn’t likely. Certainly not the kind of rain event we need… we note today is the 18th connective day with no precipitation for Birmingham and much of the state.

COOL WEEKEND: The coolest air so far this season rolls into the state for the weekend… highs drop into the 60s over the northern counties with lows in the 40s by Sunday morning. South Alabama will experience highs in the low 70s, and lows in the 50-54 degree range. The air will be dry and we expect a good supply of sunshine both days.

NEXT WEEK: The first half of the week will be dry with highs in the 70s. Global models are suggesting that we will have a risk of rain by Thursday or Friday… See the video briefing for maps, graphics, and more details.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: For the high school games Friday night, a few widely scattered showers are possible. Otherwise mostly cloudy with temperatures falling through the 60s with a fairly stiff north breeze.

Jacksonville State has a Wednesday night special this week… they will be at Middle Tennessee State tonight in Murfreesboro (7:00p CT kickoff). The sky will be clear with temperatures falling through the 70s, reaching the 60s by the fourth quarter.

Saturday, Alabama will be in College Station to take on Texas A&M (2:30p CT kickoff). About 72 degrees at kickoff with a mostly sunny sky. It will be a very pleasant afternoon.

UAB will host USF Saturday at Protective Stadium in downtown Birmingham (3:00p CT kickoff). The sky will be sunny with temperatures falling from near 67 at kickoff, into low 60s by the final whistle.

TROPICS: Just one tropical cyclone is on the map this afternoon; Philippe. The system is disorganized with winds of 45 mph… the broad center is about 255 miles north/northwest of St. Thomas. Philippe is expected to remain below hurricane strength, moving northward. It will pass near Bermuda Friday afternoon, then reaching either the coast of Maine or Nova Scotia over the weekend as a post-tropical system.

The rest of the Atlantic basin is quiet this morning, and no tropical systems are expected near the Gulf of Mexico through the weekend.

ON THIS DATE IN 1957: The world’s first artificial satellite, Sputnik, was launched on October 4th, 1857 by the Soviet Union. Sputnik was about the size of a beach ball and weighed 183.9 pounds. It took about 98 minutes to orbit Earth on an elliptical path.

ON THIS DATE IN 1995: Opal made landfall at Pensacola Beach as a Category 3 hurricane with top sustained winds of 115 mph. Opal at that time was the first major hurricane to strike the Florida Panhandle since Eloise in 1975. Opal’s legacy will always be the devastating storm surge that occurred across the coastal areas of the western Florida Panhandle. Storm surge of 10-15 feet was recorded from Navarre Beach east to Destin with 6-8 feet observed in the inland bays from Pensacola to Choctawhatchee Bay. Opal destroyed most of the homes that were facing the Gulf of Mexico from Navarre Beach to east of Destin.

Opal was a high impact event for most all of inland parts of Alabama. Rainfall measured at the Birmingham Airport reached 6.94 Inches for the day, with major flooding in parts of the city. There were two storm related deaths in Gadsden, in Etowah County, when high wind toppled a massive oak tree onto their mobile home.

Look for the next video briefing here by 6:00 a.m. tomorrow…

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