Huntsville's Weekend Weather...by James Payton

On the weather map...High pressure will keep us warm & humid with chances of afternoon storms on Friday and Saturday. Sunday should be a tad cooler. For more information on Sunday please read on...

WHAT ABOUT FAY? Tropical Storm Fay is currently just off the coast of Cape Canaveral, FL. The storm should begin moving north on Thursday...then begin a turn to the west. By this weekend the models are in fairly good agreement that the storm will move through Alabama late Saturday and Sunday. There is a good chance what's left of Fay could spark some heavy rainfall for much of Alabama by late weekend into Monday including the Tennessee Valley...depending on the exact track. The severe weather threat should be minimal due to Fay being over land for several days before arriving.

There are some outliner models that bring Fay back into the Gulf of Mexico. This seems to be an unlikely scenario...but not totally out of the question. Thus, if you're headed for the Gulf Coast this weekend take your rain gear & keep up with the latest on Fay just in case the forecast changes over the weekend. That would also change both timing & intensity here in north Alabama as well.

BOTTOM LINE...Be prepared for the possibility of heavy rainfall the first part of the week. High winds are not expected...& the threat of tornadoes in north Alabama is very, very small. Again...this forecast can change...but for now this is the best thinking.

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

For Friday...Partly cloudy. 1 in 5 chance of a storm. High 92.
Friday Night...Fair. Perhaps a leftover shower early. Low 69.
Saturday...Variably cloudy. 1 in 4 chance of showers & storms. High 87.
Saturday Night...Cloudy. 1 in 5 chance of rain. Low 68.
Sunday...Cloudy. Cloudy. 50/50 chance of rain. Rainfall could be heavy late. High 85.

Last week's weather trivia question...What happens if the National Hurricane Center uses up all of the names on the list in one year and more names are needed to finish the season? The answer was C. They use the greek alphabet. The first three storms would be Alpha, Beta, & Gamma. In the 55 years that hurricanes have received names, this has only happened one time...during the busy hurricane season of 2005.

This week's weather trivia question...TRUE or FALSE...Since the National Hurricane Center uses an alphabetical list to name tropical systems, all 26 letters A-Z are used to name storms. The answer will appear next week.

Feel free to check my blog through the weekend to follow Fay & possible changes in the forecast track though the weekend...as well as what to expect in the Tennessee Valley. Have a great weekend everyone!

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

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