By Scott Martin.
Not much has changed in the forecast, just a little tweaking. Still, snow is the word for Wednesday. Here is the latest forecast update for Barber Motorsports Park round of The Cooper Tire Winterfest.
Today:
After another morning having to deal with sleet and freezing rain, and with more travel issues on the roadways, conditions will improve and we should not expect any more issues after 10AM. Skies will be mostly cloudy today with winds shifting out of the west at 0-5 MPH. Highs should top out in the mid 40s. Precipitation is not expected after 10AM. Tonight will be mostly cloudy as well with a low in the lower 30s. No travel issues tonight and precipitation is not expected.
Wednesday:
I hate to say it, but it looks like “Old Man Winter” might win out on this day. Models have come into good agreement that a system will be moving through that will bring snow to the area. As of right now, the timing on the action to start is from 6AM to 9AM. It may start off as rain and then quickly change over to snow during the morning, and remain snowing throughout the day and evening hours. Highs are expected to reach the low to mid 30s, but temperatures will drop as soon as the snow starts to fall due to evaporative cooling.
As of right now, a Winter Storm Watch is in effect for the area, but I expect that to be upgraded to a Warning sometime during the day today. As of now, I’m expecting accumulation amounts to average 2 to 4 inches. With this type of Gulf of Mexico low pressure system in Winter, there will be a deformation axis to develop that will lead to a narrow strip (about 25 miles wide) of heavier snowfall that could be up to 8 to 9 inches. It will be difficult to know where that will set up until the system has arrived. This forecast will probably change before the system arrives. As of now, one model is saying 10 inches for the area, whereas another is only saying 1/2 inch. One thing is for sure, there will be major travel issues somewhere if not all over central Alabama.
Thursday:
This will be the best day of the week so far. Partly cloudy skies and warmer. Highs will top out in the mid 40s. Winds will be out of the north around 5 MPH. Finally, no rain or snow expected.
I will update the forecast as soon as more information comes available and if there are any changes to the models. Hope you have a great day today.
Today:
After another morning having to deal with sleet and freezing rain, and with more travel issues on the roadways, conditions will improve and we should not expect any more issues after 10AM. Skies will be mostly cloudy today with winds shifting out of the west at 0-5 MPH. Highs should top out in the mid 40s. Precipitation is not expected after 10AM. Tonight will be mostly cloudy as well with a low in the lower 30s. No travel issues tonight and precipitation is not expected.
Wednesday:
I hate to say it, but it looks like “Old Man Winter” might win out on this day. Models have come into good agreement that a system will be moving through that will bring snow to the area. As of right now, the timing on the action to start is from 6AM to 9AM. It may start off as rain and then quickly change over to snow during the morning, and remain snowing throughout the day and evening hours. Highs are expected to reach the low to mid 30s, but temperatures will drop as soon as the snow starts to fall due to evaporative cooling.
As of right now, a Winter Storm Watch is in effect for the area, but I expect that to be upgraded to a Warning sometime during the day today. As of now, I’m expecting accumulation amounts to average 2 to 4 inches. With this type of Gulf of Mexico low pressure system in Winter, there will be a deformation axis to develop that will lead to a narrow strip (about 25 miles wide) of heavier snowfall that could be up to 8 to 9 inches. It will be difficult to know where that will set up until the system has arrived. This forecast will probably change before the system arrives. As of now, one model is saying 10 inches for the area, whereas another is only saying 1/2 inch. One thing is for sure, there will be major travel issues somewhere if not all over central Alabama.
Thursday:
This will be the best day of the week so far. Partly cloudy skies and warmer. Highs will top out in the mid 40s. Winds will be out of the north around 5 MPH. Finally, no rain or snow expected.
I will update the forecast as soon as more information comes available and if there are any changes to the models. Hope you have a great day today.
