textproduct: Huntsville

NEAR TERM

(Today) Issued at 108 AM CDT Sun Apr 12 2026

The previous AFD remains on track. High temperatures are forecast to reach the mid 80s under mostly sunny skies. A Red Flag Warning is still set to begin at 11 AM this morning and will continue through 7 PM. Be sure to avoid leaving outdoor flames unattended and be especially aware around dry fuels such as grass and brush.

Previous AFD: Pleasant night ahead across the TN Valley. A few high clouds will round the ridge in place and slide through, otherwise winds will be light and variable. Lows will be mild in the mid to upper 50s, running about 10 degrees above normal for early April.

Tomorrow, the weather message of the day will be the fire weather concerns. In the past month, we have only had 6 days of measurable rain at Huntsville Airport, which has placed us in a drought level 1 of 4 and no additional rain will fall tomorrow. So with dry conditions already on hand, winds will be near gusting 15-20 mph, and RH values will be in the upper 20s. The NBM has been running too high with dewpoints, so adjusted them down slightly. We may be just a tad below official Red Flag Warning Criteria, but we are also outlooked by the National Interagency Coordination Center in a high risk of significant fire potential. This means that there is an "elevated risk for significant fires and the potential for significant fire growth on existing fires." Taking all of this into consideration, we have decided to upgrade the Fire Watch to a Red Flag Warning from 16-00Z. Please refrain from burning tomorrow and obey any local burn bans in place.

SHORT TERM

(Sunday night through Tuesday) Issued at 1033 PM CDT Sat Apr 11 2026

A ridge across the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic will slowly slide SSE through Tuesday, especially after a round of disturbances ride up its western side Sunday into Monday. These disturbances will bring an increase in cloud cover but precip chances should remain to our northwest on Monday. Southerly winds will be breezy with gusts 15-20 mph Monday and Tuesday, this will help the daytime highs reach the lower 80s on Monday and the mid 80s on Tuesday.

LONG TERM

(Tuesday night through Saturday) Issued at 1033 PM CDT Sat Apr 11 2026

High pressure over the eastern Gulf will continue to keep dry and warm conditions in place through Wednesday with afternoon highs 10-15 degrees above what we normally see in mid April. The main concern in the long term period will be elevated fire danger on Wednesday as RH values dip near or just below 30% in the afternoon with the potential for wind gusts up to 20mph. We will continue to monitor forecast trends through the upcoming week just in case conditions look more favorable for meeting Red Flag criteria. On Thursday, an upper wave will progress eastward through the Ozarks and into the TN/OH River Valleys as we head into Friday morning. This will bring a low chance (10-30%) for rain and thunderstorms, but overall the moisture available with this system becomes very limited over the TN Valley and likely won't amount to anything more than a few hundreths of an inch of rain. Behind this system, even stronger warm air advection will occur as temps rise near the 90 degree mark on Friday. Lower humidity values will result in similar heat indices but should still be taken seriously as heat related illness can still occur at these temperatures without proper hydration and cooling.

AVIATION

(06Z TAFS) Issued at 1154 PM CDT Sat Apr 11 2026

VFR conditions are forecast through the TAF period with calm to light winds becoming southerly by the late morning hours. Breezy conditions are forecast through the afternoon on Sunday with gusts up to 15-18 kts. An AMD NOT SKED line was added to KMSL due to the wind sensor being down.

HUN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

AL...Red Flag Warning from 11 AM this morning to 7 PM CDT this evening for ALZ001>010-014-016.

TN...None.