Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Detroit/Pontiac, MI

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901 FXUS63 KDTX 280953 AFDDTX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Detroit/Pontiac MI 553 AM EDT Tue May 28 2024 .KEY MESSAGES... - Additional showers and thunderstorms are expected today with a few strong storms capable of small hail and locally gusty winds. - Scattered showers and a few thunderstorms will linger tonight into Wednesday before drier conditions return to finish the work week. - Temperatures will be below average throughout the midweek period before warming up again into the weekend. && .AVIATION...
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A large upper level low pressure system will force a couple different smaller scale features through the region today presenting opportunities for showers today and tonight along with convection this afternoon for a few hours. An early morning feature will produce some scattered light rain showers. A cold front approaching this afternoon combined with peak heating will then result in more widespread showers with embedded thunderstorms. Initiation over MBS looks to be around 19Z and DTW around 21Z. Lower confidence in thunderstorm coverage means we`ll introduce it in a prob30 group for now. CIGS will be variable today, mostly VFR outside of shower activity with pockets of MVFR possible. Winds will be out of the northwest. For DTW/D21 Convection...There is a chance of thunderstorms this afternoon. Confidence is low on coverage and timing but the most probable window looks to be around 21-01Z. Any storm is not expected to be severe but could produce small hail and gusts to 30 knots while tracking southeast. DTW THRESHOLD PROBABILITIES... * Moderate in ceilings aob 5000 feet through tonight. * Low for thunder this afternoon between 21-01Z.
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&& .PREV DISCUSSION...
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Issued at 310 AM EDT Tue May 28 2024 DISCUSSION... Showers associated with an upper level shortwave will linger over parts of the area this morning. However, better coverage for showers and some thunderstorms will hold off until the maximum instability peak this afternoon/early evening as leading edge of mid/upper level cold pool (H5 temps -20C) associated with expanding upper troughing filter over the area during peak heating. During this time frame, a larger scale upper level system now dropping southeast through the upper midwest will encroach on the region and aid in this convective development to some degree. HiRes models suggest SB/MU CAPES will top 1000 J/kg in pockets later today as temperatures warm to near 70F under this increasingly cold mid/upper level pocket of air. This seems reasonable and while this is relatively marginal instability for widespread thunder, suspect it will be enough to support updrafts capable of supporting small hail development (especially given the freezing level somewhere around 8000 feet). Locally gusty small scale outflow wind gusts will also be favored in this environment (perhaps on the order of 30-40 mph in a few instances). The aforementioned upper midwest shortwave will continue its trek into the region tonight into early Wednesday and despite the loss of daytime heating should support some continuation of showers and a storm or two into tonight with a brief flare up of convection early to midday Wednesday before forcing from this system settles south of the forecast area. Thereafter, high pressure will build into the region and provide dry conditions through Friday. This high pressure will bring a period of notably cooler air to the region through the middle of the week with maximum temperatures in the 60s to near 70 Wednesday/Thursday while minimum temperatures drop well into the 40s (and most likely upper 30s in a few rural spots prone to strong radiational cooling). Temperatures then warm back up late this week into the weekend as an upper level ridge translates through the area in the wake of the current upper troughing as it pivots east and northeast out of the area. While this upper ridge progresses through the area quickly in the late Thursday to Friday time frame, a more or less zonal upper level flow pattern will then set up into the weekend and maintain a return to 70s and eventually lower 80s for high temperatures by late this weekend/early next week. A series of Pacific shortwave will translate quickly through this west to east flow regime and bring at least periodic chances of scattered showers/thunderstorm by the end of the forecast (Saturday and beyond). Timing these "episodes" is a fool`s errand at this point in the forecast. MARINE... Broad troughing aloft combines with an expansive surface pressure gradient this morning to support sustained westerly winds of 15 to 20 knots. Meanwhile, a series of embedded shortwaves migrate through the Great Lakes to support shower chances for most of the day with thunderstorm potential increasing in the afternoon. Wind gusts to 25 knots persist through the afternoon before subsiding this evening as the low is displaced further east and high pressure builds in from Canada. Rain chances however will linger through the first half of Wednesday with the upper trough axis finally swinging through mid- day to bring in drier conditions. As the transition to high pressure begins, winds become northerly with onshore flow building wave heights toward Small Craft Advisory thresholds Wednesday afternoon with quieter weather prevailing for late week. HYDROLOGY... Periodic scattered showers and thunderstorms will impact the region into tonight and early Wednesday. Additional rainfall will generally remain light to occasionally moderate with basin average rainfall in the one quarter to one third inch range over the next 36 hours. However, a few of the thunderstorms will likely bring locally heavy downpours, especially during the afternoon to early evening period. In these locations, minor flooding or ponding of water of roadways can be expected.
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&& .DTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MI...None. Lake Huron...Small Craft Advisory until 4 PM EDT this afternoon for LHZ421-422- 441. Lake St Clair...None. Michigan waters of Lake Erie...None. && $$ AVIATION.....DRK DISCUSSION...DG MARINE.......MV HYDROLOGY....DG You can obtain your latest National Weather Service forecasts online at www.weather.gov/detroit.