Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Caribou, ME

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000 FXUS61 KCAR 171625 AFDCAR AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CARIBOU ME 1225 PM EDT MON JUN 17 2013 .SYNOPSIS... LOW PRESSURE WILL CROSS THE REGION TODAY BRINGING A COLD FRONT ACROSS THE AREA BY TONIGHT. A SECOND COLD FRONT IS EXPECTED TO CROSS THE REGION ON TUESDAY WITH COOLER AIR TUESDAY NIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/...
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1225 PM...CONVECTION IS BEGINNING TO FIRE OFF ACROSS NRN NY STATE EAST INTO SW MAINE. THE LATEST MESOSCALE ANALYSIS INDICATES A STRONG THETA-E RIDGE ACROSS DOWNEAST MAINE WHERE THERE WAS STRONG SOLAR HEATING THIS MORNING. MUCAPE VALUES ARE AROUND 500-1000 J/KG ACROSS DOWNEAST MAINE AS OF NOON. THE THINKING REMAINS THAT CONVECTION WILL INITIATE ACROSS THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS AND MOVE ACROSS INTERIOR DOWNEAST MAINE THIS AFTERNOON. AT THIS TIME ONLY PLANNING TO MAKE SOME MINOR TWEAKS TO THE GRIDS BASED ON THE LATEST SATELLITE....RADAR...AND OBSERVATIONS. 938 AM UPDATE...LOW PRES IN SRN QUEBEC THIS MORNING IS 125 MILES NW OF QUEBEC CITY AT 13Z WITH A WARM FRONT EXTENDING FROM THE LOW AND ACROSS CENTRAL MAINE. THE LOW WILL MOVE EAST WITH THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY TO SLOWLY LIFT NORTH TODAY AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT THAT IS EXPECTED TO MOVE INTO FAR NRN AND WRN MAINE TOWARD EVENING. THE AIR MASS IN THE WARM SECTOR IS EXPECTED TO BECOME MARGINALLY UNSTABLE THIS AFTERNOON ACROSS THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS AND INTERIOR DOWNEAST WITH SBCAPES OF 700-1200 J/KG. THERE WILL BE SOME SHORTWAVES THAT GET EJECTED IN THE FLOW AROUND A DEEP UPPER LOW JUST EAST OF JAMES BAY THAT WILL WORK ACROSS THE AREA. THERE IS EXPECTED TO BE ENOUGH SHEAR BOTH SPEED AND DIRECTIONAL TO ENHANCE THE UPDRAFT POTENTIAL AND CAUSE A FEW OF THE STORMS TO BECOME STRONG/BORDERLINE SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON. THE BIGGEST THREAT WILL LIKELY BE GUSTY WIND WITH THE POTENTIAL THAT ANY OF THE STORMS THAT REALLY GET GOING COULD HAVE SOME LARGER HAIL. THE HRRR HAD AN AREA OF SHOWERS MOVING INTO THE WESTERN MOUNTAINS THIS MORNING THAT DID NOT MATERIALIZE TO THE EXTENT THE MODEL WAS SHOWING. THE LATEST HRRR HAS THE MOST CONCENTRATED AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MID-LATE AFTERNOON INTO THIS EVENING...MAINLY ACROSS NORTHERN MAINE AND INTERIOR DOWNEAST. MADE SOME CHANGES TO THE HOURLY TEMPS THIS MORNING AS TEMPS ARE NOT RISING MUCH IN THE NORTH WHERE THE STRATUS IS THICKER. TEMPS WERE RAISED A COUPLE OF DEGREES IN THE SOUTH WHERE THERE IS MORE SUNSHINE. THE HIGH TEMPS WERE RAISED A COUPLE OF DEGREES INTERIOR DOWNEAST AND KEPT AS IS ACROSS THE NORTH WHERE THE LOW STRATUS WILL BEGIN TO LIFT BY MIDDAY AND THERE IS STILL THE POTENTIAL THAT THE MID SHIFTS HIGHS WILL REALIZED. OTHERWISE...JUST SOME MINOR TWEAKS TO THE POP/SKY GRIDS FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE MORNING. PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... PROBLEM OF THE DAY WILL BE POTENTIAL FOR CONVECTION. 630 AM UPDATE: AREAS OF DENSE FOG SEEN ALONG THE COAST THIS MORNING PER THE BAR HARBOR METARS AND THIS IS SUPPORTED BY SOME WEBCAMS IN THAT AREA. LATEST LAPS SOUNDING SHOWED MOISTURE TRAPPED BELOW 950 MBS. PATCHY FOG THROUGHOUT THE CWA MAINLY IN THE RIVER VALLEYS. THE FOG WILL BURN OFF AFTER 8AM. LATEST RADAR SHOWED SHOWERS NOW MOVING INTO NEW BRUNSWICK W/SOME PATCHY DRIZZLE IN SOME LOCALES ACROSS NORTHERN MAINE THIS MORNING. SHOWERS MOVING INTO WESTERN MAINE MTNS THIS MORNING WILL MOVE ACROSS THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS LATER THIS MORNING. THEREFORE, BACKED DOWN THE PRECIP CHANCES TO ACROSS THE NORTH AND CARRIED A MENTION OF SCATTERED SHOWERS THIS MORNING DOWN ACROSS THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS. PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... THINGS ARE EXPECTED TO CHANGE BY EARLY AFTERNOON AS THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY LIFTS NORTH AND THE CWA GETS INTO A PSEUDO WARM SECTOR AHEAD OF THE APCHG COLD FRONT. THIS WILL ALLOW FOR DESTABILIZATION W/SOME SUNSHINE EXPECTED W/TEMPERATURES HITTING UPPER 60S TO LOWER 70S. LLVLS WILL WARM AHEAD OF A PRE-FRONTAL BOUNDARY AID IN LLVL INSTABILITY. ALOFT, THE AIRMASS WILL BE COLD ENOUGH W/MID LEVEL TEMPERATURES(700/500MBS) RUNNING -2C/-19C RESPECTIVELY. MDL SOUNDINGS FROM THE NAM AND GFS SUPPORT POSSIBLE TSTMS EARLY THIS AFTERNOON ACROSS THE NORTH AND WESTERN AREAS W/SB CAPES OF 600-900J/KG W/THE GFS THE MOST AGGRESSIVE. 0-6KM BULK SHEAR IS FCST TO BE AROUND 35 KTS. 700-500MB LAPSE RATES FCST TO BE 6.0-6.5 ACROSS THE NORTHERN 1/2 EARLY THIS AFTERNOON AND CLOSE TO 7.0 C/KM ACROSS THE INTERIOR DOWNEAST BY MID/LATE AFTERNOON. ENOUGH LLVL MOISTURE IN PLACE W/SOME DRYING IN THE MID LEVELS WILL ADD TO THE MIX. THEREFORE, DECIDED TO ADD THE MENTION OF SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS IN FOR TSTMS ACROSS THE AFOREMENTIONED AREAS. THE ACTION WILL SHIFT TO THE CENTRAL AND INTERIOR DOWNEAST AREAS THIS AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE INTO EARLY EVENING AS TEMPERATURES ARE FCST TO WARM WELL INTO THE 70S AND DEWPOINTS CLIMB TO AROUND 60F. SW WIND SHIFTING TO THE WEST THIS AFTERNOON WILL ERODE OUT THE STABLE MARINE LAYER ALLOWING FOR FURTHER DESTABILIZATION. DECIDED TO CARRY ENHANCED WORDING W/THE TSTMS INCLUDING THE BANGOR AND CALAIS AREAS AND KEPT THE MENTION OF THUNDER OUT OF THE COAST DUE TO A SOUTH FLOW HOLDING ON LONGER. QPF WILL BE A CHALLENGE DUE TO THE EXPECTED CONVECTION. DECIDED ON A BLEND OF THE GEM/NAM12 AND GFS AND MANUALLY ADJUSTED TO ACCOUNT TO 2 AREAS OF HEAVIER AMOUNTS(0.25") W/ONE AREA ACROSS THE NORTH AND THE 2ND AREA OVER THE DOWNEAST REGION. THINGS WILL WIND DOWN TONIGHT AS THE COLD FRONT CROSSES THE REGION AS LOW PRES MOVES ACROSS SOUTHERN CANADA. SOME PARTIAL CLEARING IS EXPECTED AND THIS WILL LEAD TO SOME FOG. ATTM, DECIDED TO STAY W/PATCHY FOG. THE DAYCREW CAN ASSESS THIS FURTHER W/THE LATER MODEL RUNS. FOLLOWED THE GEM AND NAM12 FOR TEMPERATURES/DEWPOINTS FOR TONIGHT.
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&& .SHORT TERM /TUESDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... HIGH PRESSURE IS EXPECTED TO BUILD IN AT THE SURFACE AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS PERIOD. AT THE SAME TIME AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL APPROACH FROM THE WEST AND MOVE ACROSS THE REGION WEDNESDAY...HOWEVER WITH DRY CONDITIONS WILL KEEP POPS LOW. HAVE BLENDED THE GFS...SREF...NAM AND ECMWF FOR POP AND QPF GRIDS. WILL USE A BLEND OF NAM12 AND GMOS FOR WINDS. FOR TEMPERATURE GRIDS WILL INITIALIZE WITH GMOS AND WILL RAISE MINIMUM TEMPERATURE TWO DEGREES BASED ON VERIFICATION. HAVE USED THE GEM FOR DEW POINT GRIDS. && .LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY/... HIGH PRESSURE WILL CONTINUE TO BUILD IN FROM THE WEST AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS PERIOD THEN CREST OVER THE REGION THURSDAY MORNING. A COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH FROM THE NORTHWEST THURSDAY NIGHT AND CROSS THE STATE FRIDAY. A FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL REMAIN NEAR THE NORTHERN PORTION OF THE STATE LATE SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. HAVE USED THE GMOS TO INITIALIZE ALL GRIDS. WILL ADJUST POP AND SKY GRIDS. HAVE ALSO ADJUSTED ALL MINIMUM TEMPERATURES HIGHER AND TO BETTER FIT THREE HOUR GMOS. && .AVIATION /16Z MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/...
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NEAR TERM: IFR AT THE NORTHERN TERMNINALS HAS BEEN SLOW TO LIFT...BUT ALL TERMINALS SHOULD BE AT LEAST MVFR BY 18Z. SCT TSTMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON INTO EARLY EVENING AFFECTING THE TERMINALS...ESPECIALLY KBGR AND KBHB. STRONG AND ERRATIC WIND GUSTS AND SMALL WILL BE A CONCERN. SHORT TERM: EXPECT VFR CONDITIONS TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY.
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&& .MARINE...
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NEAR TERM: WAVE HEIGHTS ARE RUNNING AROUND 4 FEET AT THE EASTERN MAINE SHELF THIS MORNING AND SHOULD BUILD TO 4 TO 5 FT BY THIS EVENING AS A SOUTHERLY FETCH SETS W/A SWELL COMPONENT. WINDS WILL BE LIGHT AVERAGING SPEEDS OF 10 KTS. SHORT TERM: FOR WINDS HAVE BLENDED THE NAM12 AND GFS40 AND WILL USE 125 PERCENT OF THE MODEL BLEND FOR GUST SPEED. FOR WAVES: EXPECT WINDS ACROSS LOCAL WATERS TO BE LIGHT THROUGH THIS PERIOD SO LONG PERIOD WAVE WILL DOMINATE. EXPECT SOUTHERLY WAVE GROUP 2-3 FEET/8 SECONDS ACCOMPANIED BY SECONDARY SOUTHEAST GROUP 1-2 FEET/10 SECONDS.
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&& .CAR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... ME...NONE. MARINE...NONE. && $$ NEAR TERM...CB/HEWITT SHORT TERM...MIGNONE LONG TERM...MIGNONE AVIATION...CB/HEWITT/MIGNONE MARINE...CB/HEWITT/MIGNONE

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