Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Detroit/Pontiac, MI

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000 FXUS63 KDTX 191704 AFDDTX AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DETROIT/PONTIAC MI 104 PM EDT SUN MAY 19 2013 .AVIATION...
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//DISCUSSION... UPPER LEVEL RIDGE AXIS WILL BUILD INTO LOWER MICHIGAN THROUGH TONIGHT...LEADING TO MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES (ONCE DIURNAL AFTERNOON CU FIELD SUBSIDES) AND LIGHT WINDS. MOISTURE WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE IN THE LOW LEVELS (ALREADY REFLECTED IN THIS AFTERNOON`S DEW PTS)...WHICH WILL LIKELY LEAD TO A TOUCH OF LIGHT FOG/HAZE TONIGHT UNDERNEATH SURFACE BASED INVERSION. WITH SOUTHEAST FLOW OFF LAKE ERIE...DTW/YIP/DET STAND THE BEST CHANCE OF SEEING MORE SUBSTANTIAL FOG...WHICH COULD DELAY THE EXPECTED BURN OFF TIME DURING THE MID MORNING HOURS. //DTW THRESHOLD THREATS... * NONE
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&& .PREV DISCUSSION...ISSUED 355 AM EDT SUN MAY 19 2013 SHORT TERM...TODAY AND TONIGHT SE MI STILL REMAINS UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF THE HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER EASTERN CANADA WHILE A COLD FRONT DROPS INTO THE NORTHERN GREAT LAKES AND A STATIONARY FRONT ACROSS THE OHIO VALLEY BEGINS MAKING A MOVE NORTH. THE SOUTHERN BOUNDARY WILL BEGIN FEELING THE INFLUENCE OF THE LARGE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER THE PLAINS AND LIFT NORTHWARD THROUGH THE DAY. WAA IN THE 600 TO 700 MB LAYER WILL PROVIDE A NICE CAP TODAY HELPING TO PREVENT ANY CONVECTION FROM INITIATING. THE LINGERING DRY BOUNDARY LAYER WILL HELP AS WELL BUT AS WINDS SHIFT TO MORE SOUTHERLY TODAY MOISTURE WILL BE INCREASING STEADILY THROUGH THE DAY. MID LEVEL RIDGE AXIS WILL PASS OVER MI IN THE EVENING AMPLIFYING IN RESPONSE TO THE DEEPENING TROUGH OVER THE PLAINS. PRECIP CHANCES WILL EXIST VERY LATE TONIGHT FOR WESTERN LOWER MI AS THE FRONT LIFTS NORTH...THE NOSE OF THE LLJ APPROACHES...WE ENTER THE DIFFLUENT REGION OF THE MID LEVEL FLOW AND A SPOKE OF VORTICITY LOOKS TO ROTATE AROUND THE LOW UP AND THROUGH THE AREA. SOME OF THESE SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS MAY FIND THEIR WAY INTO OUR FAR WESTERN COUNTIES THUS ONLY MODIFIED AN INHERITED AREA OF SLIGHT CHANCE POPS HERE. THE DRY AIR OVER SE MI WILL MAKE IT HARD FOR THEM TO MAKE IT TOO FAR EAST SO MOST LOCATIONS WILL LIKELY REMAIN DRY NOW THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT. LONG TERM...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY A CLOSED OFF MID LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL CONTINUE SPINNING OVER THE NORTHERN PLAINS AND UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY EARLY IN THE WORKWEEK. THIS SYSTEM IS FORECAST TO LUMBER SLOWLY EAST AS THE WEEK PROGRESSES...TRACKING OVER THE WESTERN GREAT LAKES BY WEDNESDAY AND EVENTUALLY GETTING ABSORBED BY A LARGER NORTHERN WAVE OVER CANADA. WHEN THIS OCCURS THE CLOSED LOW BECOMES A TROUGH THAT EVENTUALLY TRACKS THROUGH THE CENTRAL GREAT LAKES REGION ON THURSDAY. MODEL SOLUTIONS ARE AGAIN VASTLY DIFFERENT IN HANDLING THIS SYSTEM WITH THE GFS MAINTAINING A SPLIT FLOW AND SLOWER MOVING LOW THROUGH FRIDAY WHILE THE ECMWF ABSORBS THE LOW QUICKER BUT BRINGS A SHOT OF NORTHERN STREAM PV ANOMALY THROUGH THE NORTHERN GREAT LAKES THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. THIS POSES QUITE AN ISSUE REGARDING POPS AS THE TIMING OF THESE FEATURES WILL BRING PERIODS OF HEAVY RAIN AS WELL AS QUIET PERIODS DEPENDING ON THE MODEL SOLUTION. GIVEN THE MODEL UNCERTAINTY WILL NOT VENTURE FAR FROM THE PREVIOUS FORECAST POPS FOR MUCH OF THE WORK WEEK. THE MAIN CHANGES TO THE FORECAST WILL BE TO TEMPERATURES. WITH A LATER ARRIVAL OF SHORTWAVE ENERGY ON MONDAY SUNSHINE SHOULD BE ABLE TO CREATE A DEEP MIXED LAYER WHICH TAKES ADVANTAGE OF 850 MB TEMPERATURES IN THE MID TO UPPER TEENS TO BRING DAYTIME HIGHS WELL INTO THE 80S AWAY FROM THE GREAT LAKES. ALTHOUGH THE MODELS SHOW THE SURFACE WARM FRONT SINKING SOUTH MONDAY NIGHT WITH SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS...IT IS PROGGED TO MOVE BACK NORTH ON TUESDAY. THE PUSH NORTH OF THE WARM FRONT SHOULD BRING ANOTHER DAY WITH HIGHS REACHING OR EXCEEDING 80 DEGREES AS 850 MB TEMPERATURES REMAIN IN THE MIDDLE TEENS. THE MAIN FACTOR KEEPING TEMPERATURES DOWN WILL BE MORE CLOUD COVER AND ONGOING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS...HOWEVER THE EXTREME SOUTHERN CWA HAS THE BEST SHOT AT HITTING THE MIDDLE 80S WITH A BRIEF BREAK IN THE PRECIPITATION AND SOME FILTERED SUNSHINE. THE SURFACE LOW TRACKS ALONG THE WARM FRONT LAID ACROSS CENTRAL LOWER MICHIGAN ON WEDNESDAY. TEMPERATURES SHOULD BE ABLE TO GET INTO THE 70S ONE LAST DAY BEFORE THE COLDEST AIR FILTERS IN BEHIND THE DEPARTING LOW BY THE LATE PART OF THE WEEK. HIGH TEMPERATURES BEHIND THE LOW ARE ONLY EXPECTED TO GET INTO THE 60S FOR THE LATE PART OF THE WEEK AND INTO THE WEEKEND. THIS COMPLEX SYSTEM WILL BRING SEVERAL ROUNDS OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO THE AREA DURING THE MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY TIME FRAME. MUCAPE VALUES WILL BUILD UP TO AROUND 2000 J/KG MONDAY AND TUESDAY...INCREASING THE CHANCE FOR SEVERE WEATHER ACROSS SOUTHEAST MICHIGAN. WITH SOUTHEAST SURFACE WINDS AND SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS ALOFT THERE WILL BE QUITE A BIT OF DIRECTIONAL SHEAR IN THE LOWEST LEVELS DURING THIS TIME...HOWEVER SPEED SHEAR IS NOT ALL THAT IMPRESSIVE ON MONDAY AS SPEEDS IN THE COLUMN STRUGGLE TO REACH 20 KNOTS. TUESDAY IS A DIFFERENT STORY WITH BETTER SPEED SHEAR IN ADDITION TO THE DIRECTIONAL SHEAR AND MORE IMPRESSIVE HODOGRAPHS WITH HELICITY VALUES EXCEEDING 300 AND EHI VALUES OF 2 TO 3. THE KEY FACTOR TO THE SEVERE WEATHER POTENTIAL ON TUESDAY WILL BE IF A BREAK IN THE ACTIVITY OCCURS AND BREAKS IN THE CLOUDS ALLOW FOR DESTABILIZATION DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS. THIS WOULD INCREASE THE THREAT FOR SEVERE WEATHER...WHILE ONGOING ACTIVITY THROUGHOUT THE DAY WOULD INHIBIT THE THREAT. IN ADDITION TO THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT...HEAVY RAIN WILL ALSO BE A THREAT AS PWAT VALUES REACH 1.80 TO 1.90 INCHES. WITH A WEAKENING SYSTEM THE THREAT FOR ORGANIZED SEVERE WEATHER WANES ON WEDNESDAY...HOWEVER MUCAPE VALUES LINGERING IN THE 1500 J/KG RANGE WILL CONTINUE THE THREAT FOR THUNDERSTORMS INTO WEDNESDAY AS THE LOW TRACKS ALONG THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY. BY THURSDAY MUCAPE VALUES SHRINK TO A FEW HUNDRED J/KG...WITH THE THREAT FOR AN ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM EMBEDDED IN THE MAIN AREA OF SHOWERS BEING THE MAIN THREAT ACROSS THE SOUTHERN CWA. HIGH PRESSURE EVENTUALLY ENDS THE THREAT FOR PRECIPITATION FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AS A COOL...DRY...STABLE AIRMASS SETTLES OVER THE CENTRAL GREAT LAKES REGION. MARINE... WEAK SOUTHEASTERLY FLOW OVER THE LAKES WILL PROVIDE FAVORABLE MARINE CONDITIONS THROUGH TONIGHT. A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS WILL DRIFT TOWARD THE GREAT LAKES LAYING OUT A WARM FRONT ACROSS CENTRAL MI. THIS FRONT WILL STALL OVER THE AREA THROUGH MIDWEEK AS THE LOW TRACKS ALONG IT. WINDS SOUTH OF THE FRONT WILL REMAIN SOUTHERLY WHILE WINDS TO THE NORTH WILL BACK TO THE EAST AND INCREASE SLIGHTLY. THIS WILL LEAD TO HIGHER WAVES OVER NORTHERN LAKE HURON WHILE THE SOUTHERN BASIN...LAKE ST CLAIR AND LAKE ERIE KEEP WAVES GENERALLY UNDER 2 FEET. THIS LOW WILL BRING A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. A MID-WEEK WIND SHIFT TO NORTHERLY CAN THEN BE EXPECTED AS A COLD FRONT PUSHES ACROSS AREA WATERS. && .DTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MI...NONE. LAKE HURON...NONE. LAKE ST CLAIR...NONE. MI WATERS OF LAKE ERIE...NONE. && $$ AVIATION.....SF SHORT TERM...DRK LONG TERM....KURIMSKI MARINE.......DRK YOU CAN OBTAIN YOUR LATEST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECASTS ONLINE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/DETROIT (ALL LOWER CASE).

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