Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Twin Cities, MN

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000
FXUS63 KMPX 191311
AFDMPX

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
811 AM CDT SUN MAY 19 2013

.SHORT TERM...(TODAY AND TONIGHT)
ISSUED AT 314 AM CDT SUN MAY 19 2013

TODAY-TONIGHT...UPPER LEVEL RIDGE AXIS HAS SHIFTED INTO NRN
MN...EXTENDING SE THRU CENTRAL WI...AND WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH OFF TO
THE EAST WHILE A LARGE TROUGH DIGS DEEPER AND EXPANDS OVER THE
PLAINS STATES. AT THE SFC...A LOW PRES CENTER OVER CENTRAL SD UNDER
THE UPPER LOW WILL WOBBLE OVER CENTRAL-ERN SD...WITH A WMFNT
EXTENDING OVER SRN MN SLOWLY NUDGING N. WARM AIR AND ADDITIONAL
MOISTURE CONTINUE TO SURGE NWD INTO THE REGION WITHIN MERIDIONAL
FLOW BETWEEN THE EXITING RIDGE AND STRENGTHENING TROF...EVIDENCED BY
DEWPOINTS STILL IN THE 60S AND PWATS OVER 1.25 INCHES. ALTHOUGH THE
MORE FORMIDABLE SETUP OF THE DEEPENING SFC LOW UNDER THE ROTATING
UPPER LOW IN ERN SD WILL NOT SET UP UNTIL TNGT...A FEW BANDS OF
RAIN/TSTMS WILL PUSH THRU THE REGION DURG THE DAY TDA. SOME OF THE
RAIN MAY BE HEAVY AT TIMES...AND THERE IS STILL THE SLGT RISK OF
SEVERE TSTMS. ENHANCED UPPER LEVEL JETTING COMBINED WITH SURGING
MOISTURE /HENCE GREATER INSTABILITY/ AND STEEP LAPSE RATES WILL
CONTRIBUTE TO AN OVERALL ENVIRONMENT CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LARGE HAIL
AND DAMAGING WINDS...ESPECIALLY THIS AFTN AND EVENING OVER SRN
PORTIONS OF THE MPX CWFA. RADAR WILL NEED TO BE CONTINUALLY
MONITORED FOR NOT ONLY THE DEVELOPMENT OF STRONG/SEVERE TSTMS BUT
ALSO FOR THE POTENTIAL OF TRAINING TSTMS WHICH WOULD LEAD TO HEAVY
PERSISTENT RAIN AND POSSIBLY FLOODING /SEE HYDROLOGY SECTION/. THE
RAIN SHIELD WILL BE MORE PROMINENT LATE THIS AFTN THRU TNGT AS THE
UPPER LOW DEVELOPS SEVERAL SHORTWAVE SPOKES AROUND IT THAT WILL
ROTATE THRU THE AREA WHILE LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE IS ENHANCED ARND A
SFC TROUGH BEING DRAGGED INTO THE AREA ARND THE SD SFC LOW. THE NET
EFFECT WILL BE MORE WIDESPREAD RAIN OVERNIGHT TNGT...SOME OF WHICH
MAY BE HEAVY AT TIMES.

.LONG TERM...(MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY)
ISSUED AT 314 AM CDT SUN MAY 19 2013

EXPECT WEAKENING CONVECTION TO BE ONGOING ACROSS MOST OF THE AREA
MONDAY MORNING OUT AHEAD OF THE DAKOTAS SURFACE LOW AND
FRONT...ACROSS THE WARM SECTOR. SHOULD SEE DESTABILIZATION AHEAD
OF SURFACE LOW AND FRONT DURING THE DAY. THE NEARLY STATIONARY
BOUNDARY TO THE NORTH WILL EVENTUALLY GIVE WAY TO LARGE SCALE LIFT
WITH THE APPROACH OF THE UPPER TROUGH...AND SURFACE SYSTEM
OCCLUDES. CAPE SHOULD BE SUFFICIENT ALONG WITH SHEAR AS THE DAY
PROGRESSES...WITH THE GREATEST THREAT OF SEVERE MAINLY ACROSS THE
EASTERN CWA...NEAR FRONTAL/SFC LOW PRESSURE INTERSECTION. PER DAY2
OUTLOOK FROM SPC...MAIN THREAT WILL BE LARGE HAIL...STRONG
WINDS...AND HEAVY RAIN AS THE SYSTEM IS SLOW TO MAKE EASTWARD
PROGRESS. TEMPERATURES WILL DEPEND ON HOW MUCH SUNSHINE...IF ANY
OCCURS DURING THE DAY. WILL HAVE SIGNIFICANT CLOUD DEBRIS...WITH
BEST CHANCE OF SEEING SUN IN THE FAR SOUTH MONDAY AFTERNOON.

THE UPPER LOW WILL GRADUALLY SHIFT EAST AND WEAKEN AS ANOTHER
STRONG TROUGH MOVES ACROSS THE WESTERN CONUS. THIS SHOULD IMPROVE
THE WEATHER ACROSS THE MIDSECTION OF THE COUNTRY...THURSDAY AND
FRIDAY...AS RIDGING ALOFT TAKES OVER. MUCH COOLER TEMPERATURES
WILL DIVE IN BEHIND THE DEPARTING SYSTEM...MAKING FOR A COOL END
OF THE WEEK. THE 00Z DETERMINISTIC ECMWF BRINGS IN ANOTHER CHANCE
OF RAIN INTO THE AREA LATER IN THE WEEKEND...AS THE WESTERN TROUGH
MOVES SLOWLY EAST. THE GFS IS A BIT SLOWER WITH OVERALL
PROGRESSION OF THE LOW AND BREAK DOWN OF THE RIDGE. WILL START TO
BRING IN SMALL CHANCE POPS INTO MAINLY THE WESTERN CWA SATURDAY.

&&

.AVIATION...(FOR THE 12Z TAFS THROUGH 12Z MONDAY MORNING)
ISSUED AT 752 AM CDT SUN MAY 19 2013

ANOTHER WET TAF PERIOD. WMFNT MEANDERING FROM W-CENTRAL MN THROUGH
SE MN INTO FAR SW WI. BAND OF RA/TSRA THRUST THRU BETWEEN 11Z-13Z
THIS MRNG WITH -SHRA IN ITS WAKE. PRECIP GENERALLY WILL LAST UNTIL
15Z-16Z...THEN THERE LOOKS TO BE A DEFINITIVE BREAK IN THE PRECIP
WHILE THE WMFNT LIFTS N OF ALL THE TAF SITES. ADDITIONAL RA/TSRA
WILL RE-DEVELOP FROM THE W OVERNIGHT. TRICKY AS FAR AS TIMING OF
TSTMS SO THE THINKING WAS THAT CLOSE TO THE ONSET OF THIS NEXT
ROUND OF PRECIP WOULD BE TSTMS THEN AS THE PRECIP CONINUED...IT
WOULD BE PRIMARILY RA. WILL LOOK FOR CEILINGS TO DROP INTO MVFR
RANGE...NOT LIKELY TO GET TO IFR. VSBYS MAY WELL GET TO IFR DUE TO
RAINFALL INTENSITIES.

KMSP...MOD-HVY RAIN WITH EMBEDDED TSTMS PUSHING THRU ARND 12Z WITH
CONDITIONS QUICKLY IMPROVING BY 14Z. WILL HAVE A BREAK FROM PRECIP
THRU LATE AFTN...THEN CONVECTION EXPECTED TO RETURN BY THE EARLY
EVE HRS. TIMED IN THE PRECIP ARND 00Z WHICH LINES UP WELL WITH
SHORT-TERM MODEL GUIDANCE. PRECIP WILL THEN TRANSITION TO A MORE
STRATIFORM NATURE ONCE THE INITIAL TSTMS MOVE THRU...WITH
CONDITIONS HANGING IN THE MVFR AREA DUE TO LOWERED CEILINGS.

/OUTLOOK FOR KMSP/
MON...VFR/MVFR CIGS. SHRA/TSRA LIKELY. S WIND 10-15 KTS.
TUE...VFR/MVFR CIGS. SHRA/TSRA LIKELY. E-NE WIND 5 KTS.
WED...VFR/MVFR CIGS. SHRA LIKELY. NE WIND 5-10 KTS.

&&

.HYDROLOGY...
ISSUED AT 314 AM CDT SUN MAY 19 2013

MODEL GUIDANCE AND WPC QPF INDICATE WIDESPREAD 2-3 INCHES OF
ADDITIONAL RAINFALL THRU SUNDAY EVE ACRS THE ENTIRE CWFA. IN
ADDITION...CENTRAL AND ERN PORTIONS OF THE MPX CWFA RECEIVED 1-2
INCHES OF RAINFALL YESTERDAY. CONSIDERING THE RAPID INCRS IN SOIL
MOISTURE OVER CENTRAL AND NRN PORTIONS OF THE CWFA...PLUS WHAT IS
EXPECTED OVER THE NEXT 24-36 HRS...HAVE OPTED TO EXPAND AND EXTEND
THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH OVER MUCH OF THE MPX CWFA. MODEL RAINFALL
AMOUNTS ACTUALLY PIN THE LOWEST ADDITIONAL RAINFALL OVER SERN MN.
HOWEVER...IT IS THAT SAME REGION THAT ONLY 3 WEEKS AGO DEALT WITH
12-15 INCHES OF WET HEAVY SNOW...WHICH GREATLY ADDED TO SOIL
MOISTURE CAPACITY. CONFIDENCE IS NOT ALL THAT GREAT IN TRYING TO
HIGHLIGHT WHICH AREAS WOULD BE MORE SUSCEPTIBLE THAN OTHERS IN
SEEING FLASH FLOODING...BUT CONSIDERING THAT ANY TSTMS COULD
RAPIDLY PRODUCE HEAVY RAIN...AND THAT MORE WIDESPREAD RAINFALL IS
COMING LATE TNGT THRU MON EVE...FELT IT MOST PRUDENT TO EXPAND THE
AREA OF THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH TO PUT THE NOTICE OUT THAT HEAVY
RAIN COULD OCCUR AT ANY TIME AND QUICKLY EXACERBATE THE MOST MINOR
FLOODING CONCERNS INTO POTENTIAL FLASH FLOODING.

&&

.MPX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MN...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH MONDAY EVENING FOR MNZ041>045-047>053-
     057>063-066>070-075>078-084-085-093.

WI...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH MONDAY EVENING FOR WIZ014>016-023>028.

&&

$$

SHORT TERM...JPC
LONG TERM...DWE
AVIATION...JPC
HYDROLOGY...JPC






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