Strong storm potential for parts of Alberta Tuesday afternoon

Parts of southern and central Alberta are poised to be in the path of some potentially severe storm weather this afternoon.

At this point, It's tricky to determine whether Calgary will be caught up in the activity or just missing it.

According to Environment and Climate Change Canada’s (ECCC) storm outlook for Tuesday, Calgary is situated just outside the moderate storm risk zone, but a slight change in storm trajectory could see the city dealing with storm cells that could produce lightning, hail and strong winds.

Thunderstorm watches and warnings are likely to pop up later Tuesday in the areas on the ECCC storm outlook.

In areas to the north of Calgary along the QEII and eastwards, instability is strong enough to set the stage for supercell development, most notably in Edmonton, Lloydminster and Coronation.

From a temperature standpoint, Tuesday is looking to be the hottest day of the week in Calgary with a high of 25 C. 

This forecast high would also be the second-warmest temperature for Calgary so far this year, with the warmest day of 2024 so far being May 10 with a high of 26.2 C. 

Areas in the southeast like Medicine Hat will get close to the 30 C mark later Tuesday.

The upper low pressure system influencing storm activity will hover around the Alberta/Saskatchewan border overnight and into Wednesday afternoon, producing steady rain showers. 

It will also bring some slightly cooler air to the south, which will somewhat disrupt the warming trend resulting in a seasonal high of 20 C.

High pressure winds out later tomorrow and will keep temperatures and conditions pleasant for the remainder of the work week, then back to cool and unsettled conditions for the weekend.