Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Boston, MA

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682 FXUS61 KBOX 191956 AFDBOX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Boston/Norton MA 356 PM EDT Thu Sep 19 2024 .SYNOPSIS...
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Rain continues for the Cape and Islands through tonight into tomorrow, with chances to the northwest decreasing going into the weekend. Gusty northeast winds will keep temperatures near or below normal for much of the region tomorrow into the weekend. Next chance of rain comes around mid week.
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&& .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM FRIDAY MORNING/...
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A stalled low looks to remain off the coast of southern New England due to a blocking high to the north. Unsettled weather will continue for the Cape and Islands through Friday morning. Cloudy conditions expected to continue through tonight for the rest of eastern MA and RI into parts of central MA, but clearer conditions out to the west. Temperatures tonight expected to be primarily in the lower 60s and upper 50s.
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&& .SHORT TERM /6 AM FRIDAY MORNING THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT/...
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Tomorrow and Tomorrow Night The stalled low looks to stick around through the weekend, continuing the trend of cloudy skies and chances for rain for eastern MA. Pressure gradient between the blocking high and the low in question will encourage NE gusts up to 35 mph (30 knots) down to the Cape and Islands, reaching up to 25 mph near Boston. Highs tomorrow look to remain in the 60s for much of eastern MA into RI with persistent cloud cover and showers throughout the day, but confidence in consistent showers northwest of the Cape remains a bit low. Highs in the CT River Valley are currently expected to be in the mid 70s. However, considering today`s highs ended up a bit higher than forecast, it could reach the upper 70s to lower 80s. This will depend on cloud cover, which is a bit uncertain at this time. Chances for showers continue Friday night going into Saturday morning and strong NE flow is expected to continue.
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&& .LONG TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/...
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Key Points: * Some rain and breezy conditions Saturday * Dry to start next week, becoming unsettled mid-week No huge changes with the 12z suite of model guidance with respect the long term forecast period, though we have more consistency with the evolution of the slow moving coastal low Saturday and Sunday which gives increasing confidence for this part of the forecast. The low center Saturday morning will be just southeast of the 40n/70w benchmark and be slowly drifting south. Models all show deep moisture across the eastern half of southern New England, so that is the area with the highest chance of rainfall. The PoP gradient might need to be tightened up in later forecasts as it could end up being totally dry across northern CT and the Worcester area westward. Certainly a damp and breezy day close to the east coast with NE winds gusting over 30 mph at times. Kept with the model blend for QPF, so perhaps another 1/4 to 1/2" of rain during the day. Low pressure moves further away Saturday night and Sunday morning, we will see improving conditions from northwest to southeast. Still have some lingering PoPs (30% or so) for far SE MA, Cape and Islands for Sunday morning. That could end up being pessimistic. Some question as to how long low level moisture hangs around across southeastern sections, so that area might end up staying cloudy most of the day. Further inland looks to feature a good amount of sun. High confidence that a ridge of high pressure will re-establish dominance in our weather for the second half of Sunday into Tuesday. Beyond that, confidence starts to decrease again as an upper trough tries to move in from the west. How quickly that trough can break down the ridge is still up for grabs in the models, given some significant differences between models and model runs with regard to the amplitude and timing of that trough. For now stuck with NBM guidance and have 30-40% PoPs from late Wednesday through Thursday.
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&& .AVIATION /20Z THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/...
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Forecast Confidence Levels: Low - less than 30 percent. Moderate - 30 to 60 percent. High - greater than 60 percent. Today..High Confidence in trends Steady northeast winds will support LIFR/IFR conditions for most of the day for the eastern terminals. Some improvements to MVFR ceilings possibly by mid-afternoon. Interior terminals remain VFR with low chances for any precipitation. Tonight... High Confidence Rain continues out towards the Cape and Nantucket tonight with LIFR CIGs possible. Westward extent of IFR to LIFR ceilings could reach ORH tonight, but VFR looks to continue at BAF/BDL. LLWS towards ACK picks up at 50 knots from the NE through tomorrow. Friday... Moderate Confidence More MVFR/IFR ceilings and showers at the eastern terminals. Northeast winds increase to 15 to 20 knots at coastal terminals and 10 to 15 knots across the interior. Cape/Islands terminals could see gusts from 25 to 35 knots. Friday Night... Moderate Confidence MVFR/IFR ceilings look to persist. NE winds continue at 15 to 20 knots, gusting from 20 to 35 knots with the strongest gusts out towards ACK and the Cape. KBOS TAF...High Confidence in trends. Moderate confidence in timing for LIFR CIGs. Went towards last night`s timing. Shower activity remains uncertain for the next 24 hours; stuck with VCSH for now. Wind gusts up to 25 knots from the NE tonight into tomorrow. KBDL TAF...Moderate confidence in MVFR tomorrow. VFR/MVFR through tomorrow with gusts up to 17 knots moving in by 19z. Outlook /Saturday through Tuesday/... Saturday: Mainly VFR, with local IFR possible. Windy with gusts up to 30 kt. Chance SHRA. Saturday Night: Mainly VFR, with local MVFR possible. Breezy. Chance SHRA. Sunday: Mainly VFR, with local MVFR possible. Windy with local gusts up to 30 kt. Slight chance SHRA. Sunday Night through Monday: VFR. Breezy. Monday Night: Mainly VFR, with local MVFR possible. Breezy. Tuesday: Mainly VFR, with areas MVFR possible.
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&& .MARINE...
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Forecaster Confidence Levels: Low - less than 30 percent. Medium - 30 to 60 percent. High - greater than 60 percent. Tonight through Friday Night Dangerous Marine conditions over the next 24 to 48 hours as an area of low pressure stalls south of the coastal waters. Confidence has increased enough to issue Gale Warnings for the southern offshore zones and Nantucket Sound. Wind gusts in excess of 35-40knots are likely overnight, lasting into Saturday evening. Gales may need to be expanded further north into Cape Cod Bay and the Northern off shore zone, but confidence was not high enough to include in this update. As for the rest of the near shore waters, winds will still be gusting 25-35 knots through Saturday night including Narragansett Bay and Boston Harbor. Seas will continue to build overnight to 8-12 feet in the open waters. High surf will cause dangerous conditions near the coasts as well with large breaking waves and strong rip currents. Mariners and swimmers should take extreme caution if venturing out to beaches or jetties tomorrow. Outlook /Saturday through Tuesday/... Saturday: Strong winds with gusts up to 30 kt. Rough seas up to 14 ft. Rain showers likely. Saturday Night: Moderate risk for Small Craft Advisory winds with gusts up to 25 kt. Rough seas up to 11 ft. Chance of rain showers. Sunday: Moderate risk for Small Craft Advisory winds with gusts up to 30 kt. Rough seas up to 11 ft. Chance of rain showers. Sunday Night: Moderate risk for Small Craft Advisory winds with gusts up to 25 kt. Rough seas up to 11 ft. Monday: Low risk for Small Craft Advisory winds with gusts up to 25 kt. Rough seas up to 11 ft. Monday Night: Winds less than 25 kt. Rough seas up to 9 ft. Tuesday: Winds less than 25 kt. Areas of rough seas.
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&& .TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING...
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The persistent northeast winds will produce a surge of roughly 1.5 to 2 feet from late tonight into Saturday based upon guidance from the Stevens Institute and P-ETSS. Given the monthly high astronomical high tides, the combination means we will be reaching minor flood level along the east coast of Massachusetts over several high tide cycles. Right now it looks like the highest water levels will be experienced with the Friday afternoon high tide, and our current forecast has water levels topping out just a few inches below moderate flood stage. With the extended period of northeast winds, this will also build up rough seas and rather significant wave heights over 10 feet offshore. The combination of that wave energy could be enough to result in impacts that would normally be associated with higher water levels. That would especially be the case for those coastal locations (like Plum Island) that are very susceptible to high water levels. We have issued a Coastal Flood Watch for the Friday high tide. We will be fine tuning the forecast overnight and convert that watch to either a Coastal Flood Advisory or Coastal Flood Warning (if we expect more significant impacts).
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&& .BOX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
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CT...None. MA...High Surf Advisory from 7 AM to 7 PM EDT Friday for MAZ007-019- 022-024. Coastal Flood Watch from Friday morning through Friday afternoon for MAZ007-015-016-019-022>024. High Risk for Rip Currents through Friday evening for MAZ023. RI...High Risk for Rip Currents through Friday evening for RIZ006>008. MARINE...Small Craft Advisory from 2 AM Friday to 8 AM EDT Saturday for ANZ230-236. Small Craft Advisory until 8 AM EDT Saturday for ANZ231- 233>235-237-250-251. Gale Warning until 8 PM EDT Friday for ANZ232-254>256.
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&& $$ SYNOPSIS...Hrencecin NEAR TERM...Hrencecin SHORT TERM...Hrencecin LONG TERM...Nash AVIATION...Hrencecin/Nash MARINE...Hrencecin/KP TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING...Nash/Nocera