


Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Cleveland, OH
Issued by NWS Cleveland, OH
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090 FXUS61 KCLE 161940 AFDCLE Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Cleveland OH 340 PM EDT Thu Oct 16 2025 .SYNOPSIS... High pressure remains in control through Friday. A warm front lifts through Friday night ahead of developing low pressure across the central Plains. This low pressure tracks northeast into the Great Lakes, pulling a cold front across the area. Low pressure gradually exits northeast Sunday night and Monday. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT/... Our sunny and slightly cool afternoon will give way to a mainly clear, calm, and chilly night. High pressure over Michigan this afternoon will slide east-southeast tonight and is expected to be centered across the upper Ohio Valley/central Appalachians by early Friday. This is an ideal surface pressure pattern for strong radiational cooling across interior central/eastern Ohio and northwestern Pennsylvania, though with a modestly tighter gradient and weak southerly flow/warm air advection across our western counties. Frost Advisories have been posted from Marion County to Lorain County points east, save Lake County and the Ashtabula/Erie PA lakeshore zones (a weak onshore wind will likely persist well into tonight over the lake, making it hard to see frost near the lakeshore). Based on probabilistic guidance and the favorable surface high position it`s certainly possible a few colder valley locations in parts of interior eastern OH dip below freezing...particularly across parts of Ashtabula, Trumbull, and Wayne Counties. There is greater confidence in more widespread sub-freezing temperatures across at least eastern portions of Erie/Crawford Counties PA, so did just go with a Freeze Warning in Northwest PA. The frost/freeze headlines run from 2 AM to 9 AM Friday. Lows west of the Frost Advisory and closer to the lakeshore will range from the upper 30s to mid 40s...still a chilly October night. Some thin high cirrus will begin spreading in by pre-dawn Friday, but this shouldn`t significantly limit frost/freeze potential. High pressure starts pulling out to the east on Friday, allowing modest southerly return flow to develop. There will be more mid-high level cloud cover on Friday in response to modest mid- level warm air advection/isentropic lift. There may be light virga out of this lift Friday afternoon over Lake Erie and the adjacent lakeshore in Northeast OH/Northwest PA, though outside of a few sprinkles this should not reach the ground due to very dry low-levels and overall weak lift. Highs will range from the lower 60s in PA to the lower 70s along I-75. A few showers become a better possibility Friday night into very early Saturday morning, especially across Northeast OH into Northwest PA, as continued warm air advection/isentropic lift aloft and a gradual increase in low-level moisture take place. Am not expecting more than a bit of QPF with this activity, but have POPs as high as 60% in far Northeast OH and Northwest PA Friday night, gradually diminishing to the south and southwest. Lows will be milder, ranging from the 40s east to 50s west. && .SHORT TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT/... Active weather is in store for the second half of the weekend, though fairly inconsistent model guidance still leads to lower confidence in the finer details. Overall, some amount of rain and wind are likely with a bit of thunder possible, though the potential for anything more hazardous from any of those three things is uncertain but generally on the lower side overall. Saturday will feature us breaking into the open warm sector as a warm front exits to the northeast and as a cold front lingers well off to the west. This will lead to a warmer, mainly dry day with slightly increased southerly winds. Highs will range from the lower 70s in PA to the lower 80s in Northwest OH. The more active period of weather begins Saturday night. There continues to be broad agreement that a fairly sharp/deep longwave trough will dive into the Plains Friday into Saturday, with the trough taking on a negative tilt Saturday night or Sunday as it swings east-northeast into the Great Lakes and then into the Northeast by Monday morning. Where there`s a fair bit of disagreement is regarding how quickly shortwaves within this broader trough phase. That will heavily dictate how quickly the trough can deepen and take on a negative tilt, impacting the track and intensity of low pressure that`s expected to lift into the Great Lakes/Northeast Sunday into Monday. Yesterday`s operational models and ensembles largely keyed on an earlier phase, which led to a low pressure that deepened quickly Saturday night into Sunday while lifting out of the mid- Mississippi Valley and into the southern Great Lakes. Today`s runs have notably trended towards a slower phase, leading to a weaker initial low tracking into the Great Lakes Saturday night into Sunday while a new low develops and deepens later, tracking from the upper Ohio Valley into the Northeast Sunday and Sunday night. While both ideas still have some ensemble support, the trend towards the slower phase and somewhat weaker solution in most recent guidance has been quite noticeable and makes sense given an overall progressive pattern...with the next potent trough crashing into the Pacific Northwest coast Saturday night into Sunday, the atmosphere will want to keep things moving across the CONUS given a lack of any blocking. This trend towards a slower phase and somewhat less dynamic system doesn`t dramatically change most of the "deterministic" forecast...rain is still likely/expected from west to east along and ahead of a cold front Saturday night into Sunday, with some wrap around rain lingering behind the departing low into Sunday night, especially from Northeast OH into Northwest PA. It will still remain mild/warm ahead of the cold frontal passage on Sunday, with brisk southerly winds ahead of the cold front Saturday night into Sunday switching more west-northwesterly behind the cold front Sunday afternoon into Sunday night. What is still really up in the air is how strong wind gusts may get behind the cold front on Sunday, along with if there will be some low-toped convection along the cold front itself with a severe threat. Recent trends suggest the potential for headline- worthy winds may be decreasing, with recent trends also suggesting that low-level wind fields may not be quite as impressive when the cold front moves through, which could limit potential for any severe weather. NBM probabilities for wind gusts over 45 MPH across the area at some point Sunday or Sunday night are generally 30-60%, with 5-10% odds for gusts over 60 MPH. In terms of rain, probabilities for over 0.25" are near or above 90% area-wide, with odds of over 1.00" in the 40-60% range. There are good odds for a wetting rain at the least, with ongoing drought conditions making flooding a very distant concern. The SPC Day 3 outlook has a Marginal Risk approaching I-75 late Saturday night from the west, with no outlook inclusion for Sunday yet. The overall takeaway is that beneficial rains and breezy conditions are likely for the second half of the weekend with lower odds for hazardous weather. The most likely hazard at this point would be a marginal wind advisory for parts of the area and marine hazards on the lake. && .LONG TERM /MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/... An active, somewhat cooler pattern is expected for next week. Sunday`s system will be exiting on Monday, with perhaps a few lingering showers in our northeast counties early in the day. The next trough is expected to drop into the Great Lakes on Tuesday before slowly drifting northeast across southeastern Canada/New England Wednesday and Thursday. While agreement begins decreasing, the next shortwave may begin approaching from the west-northwest on Thursday. We should see a brief period of mainly dry weather Monday into Monday night, with periodic shower chances and breezy weather returning to the forecast starting on Tuesday. Monday and Tuesday should feature highs in the 60s, with temperatures potentially staying in the 50s by Wednesday and Thursday. && .AVIATION /18Z Thursday THROUGH Tuesday/... High pressure continues to build in through tonight with clear skies expected. Light north to northeast winds continue this afternoon before become light and variable tonight. High pressure shifts to the east tomorrow with light southerly winds and scattered upper-level cirrus during the day Friday. Outlook...Scattered showers may produce isolated MVFR visibilities Friday night. Strong low pressure will track into the Great Lakes on Sunday, bringing with it gusty winds, rain, and scattered afternoon thunderstorms. Non-VFR is likely areawide Saturday night through Sunday night. Non-VFR may continue into Monday downwind of Lake Erie in Northeast Ohio and Northwest Pennsylvania. && .MARINE... High pressure lingers over Lake Erie tonight and Friday departs to the east by Friday night. Southerly flow develops on the backside of the departing high with southerly flow exceeding 20 knots by Saturday evening as a low pressure system approaches from the west. Most model guidance has this low deepening as it moves northeast across Lower Michigan Saturday night into Sunday, with the wind field around it strengthening with it as well. However, there is a lot of uncertainty with how that manifests, including the possibility for a second low to develop near or southeast of Lake Erie, which could greatly alter the wind direction, wind speed, and wave forecast greatly. Compared to previous forecasts, the potential for high-end gale-force winds (40-45 knots) decreased greatly, though there is still is a modest chance for periods of marginal gale-force winds Sunday afternoon into Sunday night, especially with a westerly direction. Looking into next week, we`re likely to see a ridge of high pressure on Monday, followed by another low pressure system impacting the Great Lakes region on Tuesday. Strong winds exceeding 20 knots are very likely for a period Tuesday into Wednesday. && .CLE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OH...Frost Advisory from 2 AM to 9 AM EDT Friday for OHZ010-011-013- 014-019>023-028>033-036>038-047. PA...Freeze Warning from 2 AM to 9 AM EDT Friday for PAZ002-003. MARINE...None. && $$ SYNOPSIS...Sullivan NEAR TERM...Sullivan SHORT TERM...Sullivan LONG TERM...Sullivan AVIATION...Saunders MARINE...Saunders