Some cold air is headed back to Alabama later this week — and it could hang around for a while.

But the cold may not make the entire state shiver, at least through the weekend.

The National Weather Service thinks Alabama will have to deal with some rain on Thanksgiving Day as a cold front moves through the state.

But behind the front will be a blast of Arctic air that will send temperatures tumbling over the weekend in north and central Alabama. South Alabama will be cool but quite as cold as the rest of the state, according to weather service forecasts.

There will be the chance for a few storms on Thanksgiving Day, but there is still no severe weather risk for Alabama — or the rest of the nation — in forecasts from NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center. Here’s the severe weather outlook for Thursday:

On Friday the mercury will begin to drop, according to forecasters.

Highs on Friday will have big range: North Alabama may only get into the mid-40s, while south Alabama could reach the mid- to upper 50s. Here’s the forecast for Friday temperatures:

Then the cold will settle in statewide from Friday night into Saturday morning, with a widespread freeze possible. Here are the expected low temperatures overnight Friday:

Saturday will have more of the same: Highs in the 40s and 50s for the northern two-thirds of the state and 50s and some 60s in south Alabama. Here are Saturday’s expected highs:

More freezing temperatures are expected Saturday night into Sunday morning:

Sunday looks very chilly again for north and central Alabama. Here are the forecast highs for Sunday:

Colder weather looks to extend into next week, according to the weather service. NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center agrees, and has a very high probability of below-average temperatures for Alabama from Nov. 30 through Dec. 4. (See that forecast at the top of this post.)

Another long-range forecast, the eight- to 14-day temperature outlook, continues the expectation of below-average temperatures for the state through mid-December: