We are under the effect of a high pressure system over the western Atlantic, which is working in a wind from the southeast at 5-15 mph this morning. This high will continue to work moisture into our atmosphere from the Gulf of Mexico, making it feel more humid and resulting in the development of some clouds. A shortwave (extra surge of energy) will move through the Deep South tomorrow. It will likely produce isolated showers in our area during the morning and into the afternoon. Don't expect "washout weather," you'll be lucky to receive the rain.
It's a more comfortable start to the day today with temperatures in the upper 50s and low 60s. There's also a bit more moisture present in the atmosphere, which you'll feel with slightly higher humidity. Add in a calm wind and a mostly clear sky, and we have the ingredients present to create patchy, dense fog. Any fog present should evaporate by mid-morning.
Severe weather safety preparations should be finalized today if not done already. There are many things to consider when developing a severe weather safety plan. You should also have multiple ways to receive severe weather alerts, like a NOAA weather radio, weather apps, Emergency Alerts setting on your phone switched ON, local news on your TV, etc. Our team will be monitoring the storms as they develop and tracking them through the Panhandle, breaking into broadcast programming if a significant warning is issued. You can watch this coverage live on TV or stream it on mypanhandle.com, the StormTrack 13 app and Facebook.
Severe storms are possible Wednesday night into Thursday morning. The setup this time around is one that we are very familiar with - low energy, but lots of spin in the atmosphere. A developing surface low will provide the energy needed to keep things going. With a dry line ahead of the cold front, we could see storms work slowly from west to east across the Panhandle. All modes of severe weather will be possible, but the greatest threats include quick, spin-up tornadoes, damaging wind gusts and flash flooding.
Heading into the weekend, the surface high will shift to the western Atlantic Ocean, and winds will come from the south/southeast. This will result in warmer and more moist air flowing in from the Gulf of Mexico over the weekend and into next week. Saturday should be mostly sunny with some upper-level clouds here and there. Sunday is more likely to be partly cloudy to partly sunny as upper-level clouds take over the sky and thicken at times.