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000
FXUS63 KMQT 262137
AFDMQT

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MARQUETTE MI
437 PM EST MON JAN 26 2015

.SHORT TERM...(THIS EVENING THROUGH TUESDAY)
ISSUED AT 434 PM EST MON JAN 26 2015

WATER VAPOR IMAGERY AND RUC ANALYSIS SHOW AN AMPLIFIED PATTERN OVER
NAMERICA...FEATURING A RIDGE OVER THE WRN CONUS INTO SW CANADA AND A
TROF OVER THE E. RESULTING NW FLOW INTO THE GREAT LAKES IS CARRYING
SEVERAL MINOR DISTURBANCES TO THE SE...AND THIS HAS LED TO BKN PCPN
EXTENDING FROM IL/IN NNW INTO NRN ONTARIO PER REGIONAL RADAR
IMAGERY. IR IMAGERY SHOWS ONE DIMINISHING AREA OF ENHANCED CLOUDS
NOW SSE OF UPPER MI AND A SECOND AREA DROPPING SSE TOWARD LAKE
SUPERIOR. THE ENHANCED CLOUDS WITH THE APPROACHING SHORTWAVE HAVE
NOT CHANGED MUCH OVER THE LAST SEVERAL HRS...AND ENVIRONMENT CANADA
RADAR NEAR THUNDER BAY SHOWS A DECENT AREA OF ASSOCIATED SNOW
APPROACHING NW LAKE SUPERIOR. TO THE SE...AN AREA OF ENHANCED
CONVERGENCE OVER LAKE MI AT THE LEADING EDGE OF STRONGER SE WINDS
LED TO SOME SNOW SPREADING OFF LAKE MI INTO DELTA AND ALGER COUNTIES
TODAY. ON VIS SATELLITE IMAGERY...HIGH CLOUDS HAVE THINNED JUST
ENOUGH TO SEE THAT THERE IS LITTLE IN THE WAY OF LAKE EFFECT CLOUDS
REMAINING ON NRN LAKE MI NOW.

SHORTWAVE OFF TO THE NW WILL DIVE SE ACROSS UPPER MI TONIGHT. GIVEN
THE ENHANCED CLOUDS JUST NNW OF THE AREA...SNOW DEPICTED ON UPSTREAM
RADAR IMAGERY NEAR THUNDER BAY AND MODEST DEEP LAYER QVECTOR
CONVERGENCE INDICATED BY MODELS...EXPECT ANOTHER AREA OF STEADIER
-SN TO SPREAD SSE ACROSS THE WRN AND CNTRL FCST AREA THIS EVENING.
ERN EDGE OF THE FORCING WILL BE UP AGAINST A STEADY FEED OF LOW-
LEVEL DRY AIR EMANATING FROM HIGH PRES CENTERED OVER SOUTHERN
QUEBEC. THIS IS CERTAINLY EVIDENT IN NAM/GFS/RUC13 FCST SOUNDINGS
WHICH MAINTAIN A DRY WEDGE IN ROUGHLY THE 2-5KFT LAYER...AND HIGH
RES MODELS SHOW PCPN STAYING W OF ROUGHLY A KISQ/SHINGLETON LINE
WITH ONLY THE GEM GETTING PCPN CLOSE TO KERY. THUS...WILL NOT
INCLUDE ANY SNOW IN THE FCST OVER THE FAR E TONIGHT. THAT SAID...THE
ONLY POTENTIAL ISSUE WOULD BE FOR A COUPLE OF THE LES BANDS OFF NRN
LAKE HURON TO STREAK WNW INTO LUCE COUNTY FOR A TIME TONIGHT. BACK
TO THE W...HIGH RES MODELS SHOW PCPN AMOUNTS IN THE 0.03 TO 0.1 INCH
RANGE TONIGHT...FALLING ALMOST ENTIRELY BEFORE 06Z. WITH SLR
PROBABLY AROUND 17 TO 1...THIS SUGGESTS SNOW AMOUNTS OF 0.5 TO
NEARLY 2 INCHES. WITH LOW-LEVEL SE WINDS PROVIDING
UPSLOPING/MOISTENING OFF LAKE MICHIGAN...THE HIGHER SNOW AMOUNTS
SHOULD OCCUR ROUGHLY IN THE AREA S OF A LINE FROM IRON RIVER TO
NEGAUNEE TO ESCANABA. AS FOR TEMPS...BIGGEST CHALLENGE IS OVER THE
FAR E WHERE CLOUDS MAY THIN OUT ENOUGH LATE IN THE NIGHT FOR TEMPS
TO PLUMMET UNDER LIGHT/CALM WIND. FOR NOW...INDICATED MINS NEAR
ZERO IN THAT AREA.

QUIET DAY ON THE WAY FOR TUE WITH SFC HIGH PRES RIDGE OVER UPPER MI.
WHILE THE E WILL PROBABLY ENJOY A MOSTLY SUNNY DAY...LOW CLOUDS WILL
LIKELY TAKE SOME TIME TO SCATTER OUT OVER THE W AND CNTRL. EXPECT
HIGHS RANGING FROM THE LWR 20S E TO THE UPPER 20S W.

.LONG TERM...(TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY)
ISSUED AT 437 PM EST MON JAN 26 2015

THERE WILL BE MINOR FLUCTUATIONS IN THE UPPER RIDGE ALONG THE
WESTERN COAST OF NORTH AMERICA...BUT IT WILL LARGELY STAY IN PLACE
THROUGH THE LONG TERM FORECAST. THIS WILL LEAD TO NORTHWESTERLY
FLOW ALOFT OVER THE UPPER GREAT LAKES REGION AND SEND A SERIES OF
SHORTWAVES THROUGH THE AREA.

THE UPPER GREAT LAKES REGION WILL BE UNDER WEAK RIDGING WITHIN THE
NORTHWESTERLY FLOW ALOFT TO START THE PERIOD...WHILE THE SURFACE
RIDGE WILL BE SLIDING EAST OF THE AREA. EXPECT THERE TO BE SOME
LINGERING LOWER CLOUDS OVER THE CENTRAL PART OF THE CWA...WHILE
THERE WILL BE HIGH CLOUDS SPREADING OVER THE WESTERN CWA AHEAD OF
THE NEXT SYSTEM. THESE CLOUDS WILL KEEP TEMPS FROM FALLING TOO MUCH
IN THAT AREA...BUT OVER THE EAST...CLEARING IN THE EVENING WILL
ALLOW TEMPERATURES TO QUICKLY FALL INTO THE LOWER SINGLE DIGITS
ABOVE ZERO. DID TREND TOWARDS THE BETTER PERFORMING GEM MODELS OVER
THE EAST IN THOSE CLEAR SKY AND RADIATIONAL COOLING SITUATIONS.

FOCUS THEN TURNS TO THE INVERTED TROUGH PUSHING EAST TOWARDS THE
AREA ON WEDNESDAY (FROM A LOW MOVING OUT OF THE NORTHERN/CENTRAL
PLAINS) AND THREE SHORTWAVES THAT WILL COME TOGETHER OVER THE GREAT
LAKES REGION THROUGH THURSDAY. THE INITIAL AREA OF PRECIPITATION
SHOULD STAY WELL TO THE NORTH OF UPPER MICHIGAN ON WEDNESDAY (TIED
TO THE DEEPER MOISTURE AND BROAD WARM AIR ADVECTION OVER NORTHERN
LAKE SUPERIOR. BUT AS A SECOND SHORTWAVE SLIDES SOUTHEAST INTO THE
AREA FROM MANITOBA ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT...EXPECT THE PRECIPITATION
SWEEP SOUTH THROUGH THE AREA WITH THE 850-700MB TROUGH. SHOULD SEE
1-3 INCHES OF SNOW MOVE ACROSS THE AREA ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT...WITH
THE HIGHEST AMOUNTS OVER THE EAST. COLDER AIR IS DELAYED BEHIND THE
SYSTEM...SO DON/T EXPECT MUCH IN THE WAY OF LAKE ENHANCEMENT...BUT
DID FACTOR IN SOME TERRAIN ENHANCEMENT FOR THURSDAY. WITH THAT LACK
OF COLD AIR...THE CLOUD THERMAL PROFILE IS ON THE EDGE FOR ICE
CRYSTALS. AT THIS POINT...THINK THERE WILL BE ENOUGH AND LEFT OUT
FREEZING DRIZZLE...BUT IT WILL BE SOMETHING TO WATCH.

THE COLD AIR FINALLY ARRIVES ON THURSDAY NIGHT AND REMAINS INTO
FRIDAY UNDER NORTH-NORTHWEST WINDS ALOFT. EXPECT LIGHT LAKE EFFECT
TO OCCUR IN THOSE SNOW BELTS...BUT WITH SUBSIDENCE FROM HIGH
PRESSURE BUILDING INTO THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY...INVERSION
HEIGHTS WILL STRUGGLE TO RISE MUCH ABOVE 4-5KFT. THUS...THINK
ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE ON THE LOW SIDE...BUT THEY WILL BE EFFICIENT
AT REDUCING VISIBILITIES DUE TO THE CLOUD BEING ABOVE THE DGZ.
WINDS WILL BACK ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON/NIGHT AS THE HIGH SLIDES JUST
TO THE SOUTH OF THE AREA.

FORECAST BECOMES A LITTLE UNCERTAIN AS MODELS DIVERGE ON THE UPPER
LEVEL FEATURES. ALL IN ALL...LOOKS LIKE A WEAK TROUGH WILL SLIDE
ACROSS THE AREA ON SATURDAY AND USHER IN ANOTHER SURGE OF COLD AIR
(MID -20S 850MB TEMPS) INTO THE UPPER GREAT LAKES REGION. WILL
CONTINUE TO SHOW LAKE EFFECT POPS BEHIND THAT TROUGH IN THE NW WIND
SNOW BELTS FOR SATURDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY. WITH THE AMOUNT OF COLD
AIR...EXPECT LIMITED SNOWFALL AMOUNTS BUT GOOD VISIBILITY
RESTRICTION.
&&

.AVIATION...(FOR THE 18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z TUESDAY AFTERNOON)
ISSUED AT 1249 PM EST MON JAN 26 2015

IN THE WAKE OF STEADIER SNOW THAT AFFECTED KIWD THIS MORNING...
EXPECT MVFR CONDITIONS TO PREVAIL THIS AFTN. ANOTHER DISTURBANCE
TRACKING SSE WILL BRING A ROUND OF -SN TO KIWD/KCMX/KSAW LATE THIS
AFTN/EVENING. WHILE KIWD SHOULD REMAIN MVFR AS THE -SN
PASSES...STEADIER SNOW AT KCMX/KSAW WILL LIKELY DROP CONDITIONS
FROM VFR TO IFR. LINGERING MOISTURE BEHIND THE DISTURBANCE WILL
RESULT IN CONDITIONS FALLING TO IFR AT KIWD BY LATE EVENING. IFR/LOW
MVFR CIGS WILL LIKELY PERSIST AT ALL TERMINALS THRU TUE MORNING.
&&

.MARINE...(FOR THE 4 PM LAKE SUPERIOR FORECAST ISSUANCE)
ISSUED AT 434 PM EST MON JAN 26 2015

WITH WEAK LOW PRES OVER NE MN DROPPING SSE TONIGHT...STRONGER S
WINDS OF 20-30KT WILL CONTINUE OVER ERN LAKE SUEPRIOR THRU THIS
EVENING BEFORE DIMINISHING OVERNIGHT. WITH WEAKER PRES GRADIENT OVER
THE W...WINDS WILL BE UNDER 20KT. WINDS WILL THEN BE UNDER 20KT
ACROSS THE ENTIRE LAKE TUE/WED AS HIGH PRES RIDGE DRIFTS SSE FROM
THE UPPER LAKES. LOW PRES WILL THEN TRACK FROM THE MID MISSISSIPPI
VALLEY WED NIGHT TO THE LOWER LAKES THU NIGHT. BEHIND THE LOW...N TO
NW WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 20-30KT THU/THU NIGHT WITH GALES POSSIBLE
OVER THE E HALF OF THE LAKE. WINDS WILL THEN DIMINISH FRI AS HIGH
PRES PASSES ACROSS THE WRN GREAT LAKES.
&&

.MQT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
UPPER MICHIGAN...
NONE.
LAKE SUPERIOR...
NONE.
LAKE MICHIGAN...
NONE.
&&

$$

SHORT TERM...ROLFSON
LONG TERM...SRF
AVIATION...ROLFSON
MARINE...ROLFSON