Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Wakefield, VA

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528 FXUS61 KAKQ 070729 AFDAKQ AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION National Weather Service Wakefield VA 329 AM EDT Fri Jun 7 2024 .SYNOPSIS...
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Behind a cold front, cooler, drier conditions push into the region for Friday and Saturday. A weak cold front crosses Sunday, bringing a chance for isolated to scattered showers and storms.
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&& .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/...
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As of 325 AM EDT Friday... Key message: - Hot, but much less humid, today behind a cold front. Mostly clear skies expected through tonight. Early morning sfc analysis shows a cold front entering southeastern portions of the FA. Precip has largely come to an end as of latest radar aside from isolated light echos in southside Hampton Roads and Northeast NC. Broken to overcast skies persist in the southeast, but skies are clearing out behind the front. A warm, but pleasant, day is expected as sfc high pressure builds toward the region from the SW. WNW flow setting up aloft and westerly flow at the sfc will bring in drier air, offering a reprieve from the humidity. Dewpoints are expected to drop into the low-mid 50s inland and around 60 at the coast (mid 60s in far SE). Trended warmer with the temps today with highs likely to reach in the upper 80s E of I-95 and mid-80s to the W. Based on statistical guidance and thicknesses, a few spots may even touch 90 this afternoon. Skies will be mostly sunny aside from some afternoon Cu. Breezy westerly winds gust 15-25mph. Skies stay clear overnight and winds will be light. Temps will drop into the mid-upper 50s inland and low-mid 60s at the coast.
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&& .SHORT TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT/...
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As of 325 AM EDT Friday... Key Messages: - Drier weather remains Saturday. - Another weak front pushes through the area Sunday, but should remain mostly dry Remaining dry Saturday as high pressure continues to build toward the region and flow aloft become quasi-zonal over the Mid-Atlantic. Temps will be a few degrees cooler than Fri with highs in the low- mid 80s. Low humidity remains with RHs dropping to ~35% during the afternoon. Likely more clouds than Fri, but staying mostly sunny. Lows Sat night will be in the low-mid 60s. A weak cold front is still expected to pass through on Sunday. Still not expecting a lot in terms of precip. Isolated showers (and perhaps rumble of thunder) will be possible in the afternoon. Best chance for rain, though, will be along the coast late Sunday evening. Even still, PoPs cap out around 35%. Cloud cover will increase through the day Sunday. Temps likely climb to around 90 in the SE and mid-upper 80s elsewhere. Lows Sun night range from the upper 50s in the far NW to the upper 60s in the far SE. Monday is where uncertainty starts to increase due to synoptic differences between global models (discussed further in long term section). May see a stray shower on Mon due to a potential trough axis swinging through, but should stay mostly dry. Highs will be in the low 80s in the NW and on the Eastern Shore and mid 80s elsewhere. Lows Mon night once again range from the upper 50s to upper 60s.
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&& .LONG TERM /TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/...
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As of 325 AM EDT Friday... Key Messages: - Near to below normal temps expected in the early week period with warmer temps returning mid-week - Large differences in guidance lead to uncertainty in next week`s forecast There is much uncertainty in the long term period due to rather dramatic differences in the global models. The last two runs of the GFS (18z/06 and 00z/07) bring an upper low from central Canada into the upper mid-west on Tuesday, then pushes it up toward the Great Lakes and Northeast mid-late week. This solutions is being supported by a slight trend in the 00z GEFS toward the recent deterministic output. If correct, this would mean a rainy mid-week period. Meanwhile, latest ECMWF and Canadian runs deepen the early week trough offshore and build in a ridge from the W, placing the local area in a dry NW flow. For now, leaning more toward consistency and the NBM until certainty increases, which means SChc PoPs Tues through Wed night. Regarding temps, looking a bit cooler for Tues with highs in the upper 70s NW to low 80s SE. Back up to the mid- upper 80s for Wed and Thurs. Lows look to be in the low-mid 60s.
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&& .AVIATION /08Z FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... As of 135 AM EDT Friday... Precip has largely come to an end with only light showers near ECG, which should push out of the area shortly. A cold front is crossing through the forecast area, scattering out clouds behind it. BKN skies at SE terminals to start the 06z TAF period, but should go SCT by the morning. Winds are turning to the W behind the front at 5-10kt. Expect mostly clear skies through Friday with FEW- SCT afternoon Cu possible. Westerly wind will gust 15-20kt in the afternoon. VFR persists into Saturday. Outlook: Dry and VFR Friday night into Saturday behind the cold front. Another cold front will bring a slight chc of showers/tstms later Sunday. A slight chc of showers/tstms lingers in to Monday, but overall VFR conditions should prevail Sunday and Monday. && .MARINE... As of 315 AM EDT Friday... Key messages: - No headlines in effect for the waters, a few brief surges of wind are expected, the first late tonight/early Saturday, and another late Sunday night/early Monday. - Low rip current risk at all area beaches expected today into the weekend. A weak cold front is currently approaching the waters early this morning, and will cross the area through sunrise. There is no cold air with this initial boundary, so aside from modest pressure rises and a slightly drier airmass, winds will remain below SCA criteria, averaging around 10 kt today from the WNW in the wake of the front. Waves in the bay are 1-2 ft with seas offshore running 2-3 ft. By tonight, there is a somewhat more significant surge of cooler/drier air, allowing winds to turn more to the NNW and increase to around 15 kt with gusts to ~20kt for a few hrs. Pressure rises are still rather minimal (4mb/6hr) between 00-06Z tonight so overall this looks too weak to raise SCA headlines and will more likely just need a short-fused MWS to highlight about a 2 hr period with gusts to 20 kt+ in the Bay. Thereafter, expect mostly quiet marine conditions for the rest of the weekend, the flow becomes SW once again on Sunday ahead of the next cold front which should cross the waters Sunday evening. SW winds on Sunday could gust to around 20 kt over the rivers w/ better mixing, but overall this looks to remain below SCA criteria. Another marginal surge of northerly winds is then expected Sunday night/early Monday, again probably falling just short of SCA criteria across the Bay (and well below criteria on the ocean). Waves/seas will average 1-2 ft and 2-3 ft, respectively, into early next week. Low rip current risk is forecast for all area beaches Friday and Saturday. && .TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING... As of 300 AM EDT Friday... Will allow the current crest of high tide at Bishop`s Head to occur (staying below Minor Flood threshold), then will cancel the Coastal Flood Statement for bay- facing portions of the MD Eastern Shore. && .AKQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MD...None. NC...None. VA...None. MARINE...None. && $$ SYNOPSIS...AM NEAR TERM...AM SHORT TERM...AM LONG TERM...AM AVIATION...AM MARINE...LKB TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING...