James Spann: Light rain coming to Alabama this evening; colder Thursday



LIGHT RAIN TONIGHT: Clouds will increase over the western half of Alabama this afternoon ahead of disturbances that will bring light rain to much of the state this evening. The most widespread rain will fall along and south of I-20 and should amount to less than half an inch. Rain will end early Thursday across the northern half of the state, but showers could continue into the afternoon over far southern Alabama.

A new blast of colder air will move across the state on Thursday, and frost is expected along the Gulf Coast Friday morning. Colder locations in northern Alabama will drop to 15 to 19 degrees early Friday. Skies will be sunny and temperatures will not rise above the 40s Friday afternoon across the northern half of the state.

THE ALABAMA WEEKEND: Saturday will be dry, with highs above 50 degrees across most of the state. Low 60s are likely in south Alabama on Sunday. Clouds will increase throughout the day before some rainfall occurs in the state on Sunday night.

NEXT WEEK: Heavy soaking is expected across Alabama early next week. We are forecasting 2 to 3 inches of rain Sunday night into Tuesday night. Some thunderstorms are possible, but severe storms are not expected. The second half of the week looks cool and dry, with highs in the 50s and lows in the 30s.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: The Alabama High School State Football Championship games will be played at Protective Stadium in Birmingham this year.

For tonight’s 7A game (Thompson vs. Central-Phenix City), skies will be cloudy with only a slight chance of light rain in the second half. Temperatures will be in the 40s.

There are three games on Thursday (3A at 11 a.m., 1A at 3 p.m. and 5A at 7 p.m.). Skies will be partly sunny for day games, with temperatures in the mid to upper 40s. Skies will be clear for Thursday night’s game, with low 40s at kickoff quickly falling into the 30s.

Three games conclude the event on Friday (4A at 11 a.m., 2A at 3 p.m. and 6A at 7 p.m.). The sky will be clear; Temperatures will be in the low to mid 40s for day games and 30 degrees are expected for most of the night games.

The C-USA championship game will be played in Jacksonville on Friday; Jax State hosts Western Kentucky (kickoff 6 p.m. at Amfirst Stadium). Skies will be clear and temperatures will drop to over 30°C during the game.

ON THIS DATE IN 1952: December began with cool temperatures in London, causing Londoners to burn more coal to heat their homes. On December 5th there was high pressure over the Thames, causing a thick layer of smog to form. The smog became so thick on December 7th that sunlight was virtually impossible to see in London. Most conservative estimates put the death toll at 4,000, with some even suggesting the smog killed up to 8,000 people.

For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit AlabamaWx.