James Spann: More Arctic air by the weekend; snow showers???

*** No afternoon video briefing today due to travel; I am at the AMS (American Meteorological Society) annual meeting in Houston. Videos return tomorrow ***

SUNNY, COOL WINTER DAY: Temperatures are in the 40s and 50s across Alabama this afternoon with a sunny sky. Tonight will be clear and cold with lows generally in the 20s.

FRIDAY AND THE WEEKEND: The sky becomes mostly cloudy Friday as another Arctic front rolls into Alabama. A few sprinkles or flurries are possible, but any precipitation will be very light. Most communities across the Tennessee Valley will hold in the 30s with an icy north wind; but South Alabama will see a high in the low 50s ahead of the front.

Very cold air will settle into the Deep South over the weekend. As a surface low moves northeast just off the Atlantic coast, a few snow showers will be possible over the northern half of Alabama Saturday on the back side of the circulation with temperatures holding in the 20s through the day. While no widespread accumulation is expected, where heavier snow showers develop there could be a few spots with 1/4″ to 1/2″, mainly over the northeast part of the state.

The sky becomes clear Saturday night, and colder spots over North Alabama could reach the single digits by early Sunday morning (much like yesterday morning). Teens are likely deep into the southern counties the state. Sunday will be sunny and cold with highs in the 30s and low 40s.

NEXT WEEK: New model data this morning shows generally dry weather conditions across Alabama next week; showers are possible Wednesday or Thursday. After a high Monday in the 40s, most communities will reach the 50s each day for the rest of the week.

ON THIS DATE IN 2014: “Snowmageddon” crippled much of North/Central Alabama for several days. It was only about 1 to 2 inches of snow, but temperatures were in the 17-22 degree range as the snow fell. After initially melting due to warm soil temperatures, we had a “flash freeze”, putting down a base of ice on all roads, making travel almost impossible. The 1-2 inches of snow basically produced travel conditions you would expect from a crippling ice storm (a long duration of freezing rain).

Travel went from difficult to impossible, cars were left in the middle of highways as people changed from a “get home” mindset to a “survive” mindset. Thousands of kids were stranded in schools, countless adults spent the night in their office, some spent over 20 hours stuck in their vehicle on Interstate highways. Families were separated, and this developed into a full blown civil emergency; a humanitarian disaster.

For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit the Alabama Weather Network.