Huntsville's Weekend Weather...by James Payton

On the weather map...High pressure will continue to be the rule through Saturday. Temperatures & humidity levels will be slowly coming up...which means small chances of afternoon thunderstorms. On Sunday a weak front will get close enough to the Tennessee Valley to perhaps spark a better coverage of thunderstorms. As far of the Fourth of July is concerned...only a very small chance of a shower or storm...but it appears most if not all barbeques & firework shows should go off without a hitch. Be sure to get out and enjoy some of them!

As was the case last weekend, keep in mind that some of these afternoon summertime thunderstorms can get quite strong...producing brief gusty winds, small hail, torrential rains, & frequent lightning. Just be ready to briefly move indoors if a storm approaches your location.

Here's my official Tennessee Valley holiday weekend forecast...

For the Fourth of July...Partly cloudy. 1 in 5 chance of an afternoon thunderstorm. High 89.
Friday Night...Partly cloudy. Chance of a storm continues mainly before Midnight. Low 68.
Saturday...Partly cloudy. 1 in 4 chance of an afternoon thunderstorm. High 87.
Saturday Night. Partly cloudy. Risk of a thunderstorm continues. Low 67.
Sunday...Partly cloudy. 1 in 3 chance of afternoon thunderstorms. High 88.

Last week's weather trivia question...TRUE or FALSE...A 'blue moon' occurs when the moon actually obtains a shade of blue...which is something that rarely happens. The answer is FALSE. A blue moon is rare...but it happens when two full moons occur in the same calendar month. The last time this happened was in June of 2007. It will occur next in December 2009.

This week's weather trivia question...If there is a 15 second delay from the time lightning flashes until the time the thunder is heard, about how far is the thunderstorm away from your location?

A. 1 mile
B. 3 miles
C. 5 miles
D. 8 miles

Answer will appear in next week.

Have a happy & safe Fourth of July everyone!!!

~James Payton
Huntsville about.com Meteorologist
http://uahweather.blogspot.com

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