Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Wakefield, VA

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370 FXUS61 KAKQ 301901 AFDAKQ AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION National Weather Service Wakefield VA 301 PM EDT Thu May 30 2024 .SYNOPSIS...
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An upper trough will track across the region late this afternoon and into tonight, bringing an increase in clouds and a few passing showers over south central VA and northeast NC. Otherwise, pleasant and less humid conditions are expected today through Saturday. A weak trough will bring an increase in clouds and a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms Sunday.
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&& .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM FRIDAY MORNING/...
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As of 300 PM EDT Thursday... Key Message: - A few showers will be possible late this afternoon and this evening over south central and southeastern VA into NE NC. Rainfall amounts will be quite light and areal coverage of showers are expected to be quite low. GOES water vapor channels depict a potent upper trough dropping SE across western PA this afternoon. Scattered CU have developed inland this afternoon in advance of the upper trough. Very pleasant with temperatures in the mid 70s, dewpoints in the mid 40s to lower 50s, and a N wind of 10-15 mph. The upper trough will sweep across the area late this afternoon through the early overnight hours followed by a secondary cold front. 12z/30 CAMs continue to depict some very isolated showers from s-central/SE VA into NE NC pushing SE late this afternoon through the early overnight hours, with the HRRR consistently showing a little more coverage over SE VA. High pressure over the Great Lakes will build in from the NW later tonight. The sky clears from NW-SE with overnight/early Friday morning lows ranging from the mid/upper 40s NW to the upper 50s/around 60F SE.
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&& .SHORT TERM /6 AM FRIDAY MORNING THROUGH SUNDAY/...
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As of 300 PM EDT Thursday... Key Messages: - Continued pleasant with temperatures still cooler than normal for Friday. Comfortably cool Friday night with lows in the 40s inland to low 50s at the coast. - Warming temperatures but remaining dry for Saturday. - A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms returns Sunday. Surface high pressure builds across the region Friday into Saturday as the upper trough shifts offshore and an upper ridge builds across the Ohio Valley. Very pleasant and sunny Friday with highs in the mid 70s and dewpoints dropping into the upper 30s to mid 40s. Comfortably cool Friday night/early Saturday morning with lows ranging from the mid/upper 40s W to the lower to mid 50s along the coast. The airmass modifies Saturday with highs warming into the upper 70s to lower 80s. Still sunny and pleasant with dewpoints in the upper 40s to lower 50s. Surface high pressure remains over the area Saturday night, before shifting offshore Sunday. Low temperatures will mainly be in the mid 50s to lower 60s Sunday morning, followed by highs of 80-85F Sunday. The upper ridge builds across the region, but does break down slightly later Sunday as a shortwave trough tracks across the top of the ridge. A warm front will also lift into the region as the high moves offshore. PW values increase but still remain near normal. PoPs for showers/tstms have been maintained at 20% or less at this time. However, some of the 12z/30 guidance does suggest higher rain chances across the north.
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&& .LONG TERM /SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY/...
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As of 300 PM EDT Thursday... Key Messages: - Gradually warming trend continues from Monday through the middle of next week. - Low rain chances continue with typical late day and evening showers and thunderstorms possible both Monday and Tuesday, with an increased chance Wednesday and Thursday. A slight chc of showers/tstms lingers across northern portions of the area Sunday night. Otherwise, mild with lows in the 60s late Sunday night into early Monday morning. Ensemble guidance depicts zonal flow early next week with mainly dry conditions outside of a limited chc of afternoon/evening showers/tstms. A warming trend commences with high temperatures in the lower to mid 80s toward the coast, and mid to upper 80s inland. EPS/GEFS depict weak troughing developing across the Mid-Atlantic Wednesday/Thursday with an increase in PW anomalies. Therefore, there is an increased chc of afternoon/evening showers/tstms by Wednesday and Thursday. More humid with highs remaining in the lower to mid 80s toward the coast and the mid to upper 80s inland. Lows will mainly be in the 60s during the early to middle portion of next week.
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&& .AVIATION /19Z THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... As of 200 PM EDT Thursday... High pressure is centered over the Great Lakes as of 18z, with an upper trough and secondary cold front dropping SE across PA/WV. VFR with FEW-SCT CU along the coast and SCT-BKN CU inland with bases of 5-7kft. The wind is mainly N to NW 10-15kt with occasional gusts up to 20kt. The upper trough and cold front will approach from the NW late this aftn and evening, and push through the area overnight. This is expected to bring a period of BKN cigs ~6kft, especially from central/SE VA into NE NC (less cloud cover at SBY) along with very isolated showers. ORF and PHF have the best chc (albeit limited) of showers this evening through around 06z so VCSH has been added to those sites. Any showers should have little impact on cig/vsby. Otherwise, clouds clear from NW-SE overnight into early Friday morning. The wind later this aftn into tonight will be light and generally out of the NW to N. Sunny and VFR Friday with a northerly wind of 10-15kt with occasional gusts approaching 20kt through midday, and then diminishing during the aftn as high pressure builds in from the NW. High pressure spreads across the region Friday night through Saturday, before sliding offshore Sunday through Tuesday. Primarily dry and VFR conditions are expected to prevail Thursday night through Tuesday. The only exception is a slight chc of showers/tstms Sunday as a weakening system tracks N of the area. && .MARINE... As of 245 PM EDT Thursday... Key Messages: - All Small Craft Advisories have been discontinued. - Another brief N surge of 15 to 20 knots is possible Friday morning as high pressure builds in from the NW. Sfc high pressure is centered across the western Great Lakes this aftn, with sfc low pressure off the southern New England coast. N to NW winds are averaging 10-15 kt this aftn over the local waters, with seas 2-3 ft (except locally 3-4 ft off NC). Waves are 1-2 ft in the Bay. Winds will tend to drop off a bit this evening. As high pressure starts to builds in from the NW overnight into Fri, N winds again increase to ~15 kt+ with gusts to 20 kt+ with the highest winds expected from about 4 am through ~10 am. Local wind probs have a 20-40% chc for 18 kt sustained winds in the Bay (which is less than what occurred earlier today when the probs were >60%). Expect that there will be a short duration of gusts to 20-25 kt but confidence in this lasting long enough to warrant headlines is low. Decided to not issue any SCA headlines for now and will allow next shift to assess (at the very least we will probably need to issue an MWS for a short duration surge Friday morning). Either way, this should be a low- end SCA event if it does occur, with sub- SCA conditions returning Fri aftn and beyond. Winds will generally be light Saturday as the sfc high settles over the region, with a southerly flow developing Sat night/Sunday as the sfc high shifts off the coast. Sub-SCA conditions continue through the middle of next week, with seas 2-3 ft and waves 1-2 ft or less. && .TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING...
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As of 200 PM EDT Thursday... NNE winds have led to 3-4 ft waves along NC Beaches and with low tide expected early this evening have raised Moderate rip risk for NC OBX Currituck through 8 pm this evening (low rip risk elsewhere). It will be close again Friday (southern VA/NE NC beaches) as another northerly surge could bring waves ~3ft nearshore, but for now stayed with Low rips all zones Friday.
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&& .AKQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MD...None. NC...None. VA...None. MARINE...None. && $$ SYNOPSIS...AJZ/MAM NEAR TERM...AJZ SHORT TERM...AJZ LONG TERM...AJZ AVIATION...AJZ MARINE...LKB TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING...AKQ