Top five NWS Birmingham counties by population (using 2020 Census data):
1st:Jefferson County (674,721)
2nd:Montgomery County (228,954)
3rd:Tuscaloosa County (227,036)
4th:Shelby County (223,024)
5th:Lee County (174,241)
NWS Birmingham's forecast area includes five of the state's top ten cities by population:
2nd:Birmingham (200,733)
3rd:Montgomery (200,603)
4th:Tuscaloosa (99,600)
6th:Hoover (92,606)
7th:Auburn (76,143)
The NWS Birmingham forecast area is home to:
- The highest point in Alabama, Cheaha Mountain at 2,407feet above sea level (USGS benchmark)
- The southernmost extent of the Appalachian Mountains
- Alabama's geographic center, located in Chilton County
- The Alabama State Capital, Montgomery
- The hottest temperature recorded in Alabama: 112F in Centreville on September 6, 1925
- The most snow in a 24-hour period in Alabama: 20 inches in Walnut Grove on March 13, 1993
- Several of Alabama's major waterways and water resources including: [Rivers] Alabama River, Black Warrior River, Cahaba River, Coosa River, Tallapoosa River, and the Tombigbee River; [Lakes] Lake Martin, Logan Martin Lake, Smith Lake, and Weiss Lake
- The Vulcan statue, the largest cast iron statue in the world, a reflection of Birmingham's early roots in the iron and steel industry
Radar Comes to Alabama!
The use of Doppler radar in Alabama began in February 1992 with the completion of the WSR-88D near Montgomery, AL (KMXX). The radar is located about 30 miles east-northeast of Montgomery. Two days after becoming operational, the first mesocyclone shown by Doppler radar in Alabama was detected with a complex of thunderstorms moving from Cherokee County, AL into Polk County, GA. The storm produced a tornado that left a damage path more than 40 miles long.
WSR-88D (Doppler) radars, capable of producing velocity data andinforming meteorologists about wind speed and direction within storms, replaced a network of WSR-57 radars that did not provide such information. One of these WSR-57 radars, now decommissioned,was located in Centreville, AL.
Does your office work with anyone?
Yes! We are not isolated within the walls of our building, but rather we collaborate with neighboringNWS offices, national-level NWS centers, emergency management at the local / state / Federal level, and even academia / researchers and media partners.
What does your office provide?
We proudly provide a 24/7/365 weather servicefor Central Alabama. Some of our duties include:
- 7-day forecasts for general weather conditions
- 7-day hazardous weather outlooks
- Watches and warnings for various weather hazards
- Aviation forecasts for 6airports in Central Alabama
- Fire weather forecasts and hydrology forecasts
- Monitor ongoing weather conditions
- 24/7/365 weather radio broadcast across 10 Central Alabama transmitters
- Provide decisionsupport forcore partners
- Launch weather balloons twice daily
- Survey, categorize, and rate storm damage
- Backup duties for Huntsville, AL; Peachtree City, GA; and Little Rock, AR if the situation arises
- GIS formeteorological and hydrological data
- Maintain climate records for 6 stations
- Social media updates
- Outreach events
- Local weather research
What areas do you serve?
We serve 39 counties in Central Alabama: Autauga, Barbour, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton, Clay, Cleburne, Coosa, Dallas, Elmore, Etowah, Fayette, Greene, Hale, Jefferson, Lamar, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Marion, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Randolph, Russell, Shelby, St. Clair, Sumter, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker, and Winston.
What kind of weather does the area get?
🌪️Central Alabama is most known for its severe weather, specifically tornadoes. The months of November to May feature the most tornadoes, with a prominent peak in March and April. Tornadoescan occur at any time of the day or night. While notcommonplace, violent, long-track tornadoes have occurred. Our part of the country is particularlyvulnerable to tornadoes and their impacts due to the intersection of high tornado frequencyand a population affected by a range of socioeconomic factors. We also receive other kinds of severe weather including damaging straight-line winds and large hail, especially during the spring.
💧Rainfall is abundant and fairly well distributed throughout the year. Fronts during the fall, winter, and spring bring bands of rain and storms in a reasonably consistent manner. Summer rainfall is almost entirely from scattered afternoon to evening pop-up storms as frontal passages become weaker and less frequent.
🌊Flooding is usually not widespread in our area, but we are not immune to instances of significant flooding. Flooding can be enhanced by terrain, urbanization,poor drainage, and excessive runoff into waterways. We've had several cases of rapidly-developing flooding due to heavy rainfall and the aforementioned factors (e.g., Significant and Life Threatening Flooding of October 6, 2021).
🌀Once tropical systems enter the Gulf of Mexico, they have to landfall somewhere. These systems can bring flooding, gusty winds, and tornadoes as they move across Central Alabama. Usually the impacts aren't blockbuster and far-reaching but, sometimes, a fast-moving system may reach our area before having time to substantially weaken, resulting in more significant and widespreadimpacts (e.g., Hurricane Zeta 2020).
❄️A good, widespread, multi-inch snowfallis rare enough that snow lovers are on the edge of their seat each year for an opportunity. We can go several years without measurablesnow. Our southern extent means that we usually get an influx of 'milder' air as a storm system moves through, leaving us with a chilly rain or briefwintry mix.There are times when things come together just right (storm track, timing, depth of cold air) for the area to get blanketed in several inches of snow (e.g., December 8th, 2017). Snowfall usually doesn't stick around too long, but even a small amount can cause big problems for communities across the region.
🌡️Climate records for the Birmingham, AL area and Montgomery, AL area show that January is the coolest month of the year. The hottest month of the year is July, though August is a very close second and not all that different. During the summer months, we've an abundance of high dew points, making for a humid anduncomfortableair mass. The driest month of the year is October with March edging it out for the wettest. Temperatures below zero (extremely rare) and in the triple digits (occasional)have taken place, along with episodes of exceptional drought and excessive rainfall.
Three essential things for residents to do:
- Know where you are on a map. This is a very important part of being weather-ready and will help you quickly determine if you are 'in' or 'out' of a severe weather threat.
- Be weather aware throughout the year. When you hear of a potential for hazardous weather, be sure to check a few times a day for updates.
- Have a weather safety plan and kit. This includes having multiple ways to get warnings (including while sleeping!), having a designated safe place, and a container with essential supplies.
Do you have stats on Alabama's tornadoes?
We have a lot of data! Check out the graphic below which showstornado counts and intensities over
the years.Browse this pagefor a lot more!
