Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Detroit/Pontiac, MI

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000 FXUS63 KDTX 161956 AFDDTX AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DETROIT/PONTIAC MI 356 PM EDT SUN JUN 16 2013 .SHORT TERM...
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REST OF TODAY AND TONIGHT THE MAIN JET STREAM AXIS WILL REMAIN IN PLACE OVER THE GREAT LAKES REGION RESULTING IN STATIC ADVECTIONS OR LITTLE AIRMASS TURNOVER. THIS WILL BE REFLECTED AT THE SURFACE WITH NO SURFACE PRESSURE TENDENCY AND A WEAK SURFACE TROUGH OR COL LIKE STRUCTURE. THE NEUTRAL ADVECTION PATTERN HAS AN IMPACT HERE YET THIS AFTERNOON AS THE LACK OF MIDLEVEL COOLING SHOULD KEEP A SUBTLE CAP IN PLACE CENTERED AT 775MB. THERE STILL REMAINS SOME TIME FOR AN ISOLATED CELL TO INITIATE IN SOME WEAKNESS OF THE CAPPING...POSSIBLY AIDED BY SOME LAKE CONVERGENCE FORCING. HOWEVER...THE LIKELIHOOD OF THIS TO OCCUR IS CERTAINLY 20 PERCENT OR LESS. THE LACK OF ADVECTION OR POSITIVE SURFACE PRESSURE TENDENCY SHOULD SIGNAL THE LACK OF ANY SIGNIFICANT LOW TO MIDLEVEL INVERSION TONIGHT. THIS INCREASES CONFIDENCE THAT SKIES SHOULD BE PREDOMINATELY CLEAR FOR THE DURATION OF THE NIGHT. THE ONE EXCEPTION WILL BE OVER THE NORTHERN CWA LATE IN THE FORECAST PERIOD AS SOME LEFTOVER CONVECTIVE DEBRIS AHEAD OF A WEAK SURFACE BOUNDARY MAY SURVIVE THE TRIP SOUTHWARD. CONFIDENCE IN THIS OCCURRING REMAINS LOW.
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&& .LONG TERM...
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MONDAY THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON WATER VAPOR SATELLITE IMAGERY AND SURFACE ANALYSIS INDICATE THE UPPER LEVEL TROUGH SHEARING SOUTHWARD FROM CENTRAL CANADA AND CARRYING THE ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT INTO THE UPPER MIDWEST. THIS SYSTEM WILL BE THE FOCUS OF CONDITIONS IN SE MICHIGAN MONDAY AND MONDAY NIGHT AND PRESENTS A FAIRLY STRAIGHTFORWARD FORECAST SCENARIO FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. AT FIRST, IT LOOKED LIKE BOUNDARY LAYER MOISTURE RETURN WOULD BE ONE OF THEM BUT PERHAPS NOT CONSIDERING HOW CONVECTION IS DEVELOPING TODAY OVER THE NORTHERN GREAT LAKES. LOWER 50S SURFACE DEWPOINT IS GOOD ENOUGH IN THAT AREA WHERE TEMPERATURES ALOFT ARE ABOUT -16C AT 500 MB. THERE IS GOOD AGREEMENT AMONG THE NEW MODEL OUTPUT SHOWING SOME OF THIS COLD AIR ALOFT SETTLING OVER SOUTHERN LOWER MICHIGAN BY MONDAY AFTERNOON TAKING 500 MB TEMPS DOWN TO BETWEEN -14 AND -16C. EXPECT THIS WILL PERMIT LOWER TO MID 50S SURFACE DEWPOINT TO GENERATE CAPE AROUND 1500 J/KG, GOOD ENOUGH FOR CONVECTION TO BECOME ORGANIZED WITHIN A STRONG WIND FIELD FEATURING NEARLY 60 KNOTS OF WESTERLY FLOW AT 500 MB AND 45 KNOTS OF 0-6KM BULK SHEAR. THE STRONG UNIDIRECTIONAL NATURE OF THE SHEAR PROFILE INDICATES A DISCRETE SUPERCELL MODE IS POSSIBLE EARLY WITH ENHANCED UPDRAFTS CAPABLE OF LARGE HAIL DUE TO FREEZING LEVEL ON THE LOW SIDE, ABOUT 10500 FEET, FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR. A QUICK EVOLUTION INTO A LINEAR MODE COULD FOLLOW WITH A DAMAGING WIND COMPONENT. WESTERLY UPPER LEVEL FLOW AND DAYTIME SURFACE HEATING SOUTH OF THE FRONT WILL BUY SOME DRY CONDITIONS DURING MONDAY MORNING. THE MAIN FORECAST ADJUSTMENT IS TO DELAY HIGHER POPS INTO THE AFTERNOON IN THE TRI CITIES AND EXTEND TO THE SOUTH AND INTO MONDAY EVENING TOWARD THE OHIO BORDER. MODEL CROSS SECTIONS ALSO INDICATE THE SHALLOWNESS OF THE COLD FRONT WILL HAVE AN IMPACT ON SOUTHWARD PROGRESSION AS SURFACE HEATING OVER INTERIOR LOWER ERODES THE PRESSURE FIELD. NOT UNTIL MONDAY EVENING WILL THE FRONT RELEASE THE REST OF THE WAY THROUGH LOWER MICHIGAN WITH A BOOST FROM LAKE HURON AND LAKE MICHIGAN, AND ALSO WITH A BOOST FROM EXTRA HEIGHT FALLS WITH THE SHARPENING UPPER TROUGH OVER NORTHERN ONTARIO AND QUEBEC. EXPECT THEN A STEADY DECREASE IN POPS THROUGH THE NIGHT AS THE LOW LEVEL BAROCLINIC ZONE MOVES FARTHER SOUTH OF THE REGION TOWARD TUESDAY MORNING. FRESH CANADIAN HIGH PRESSURE THEN REMAINS ON TRACK TO SETTLE OVER SE MICHIGAN FOR THE MID WEEK PERIOD. THE NEW MODEL SOLUTIONS REMAIN ROCK SOLID ON THE SCENARIO THROUGH THURSDAY WHEN HINTS OF A DRY BACKDOOR COLD FRONT SHOW UP THURSDAY NIGHT INTO FRIDAY. THIS IS SYMPTOMATIC OF NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT PERSISTING LONGER OVER THE GREAT LAKES AS THE UPPER LEVEL BLOCK MATURES OUT WEST. IT ALSO MEANS CONDITIONS BECOMING MORE UNSETTLED FOR NEXT WEEKEND.
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&& .MARINE...
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FAVORABLE MARINE CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST ACROSS AREA WATERWAYS WITH A BENIGN PATTERN IN PLACE. WIND AND WAVE CONDITIONS WILL OTHERWISE REMAIN FAVORABLE UNTIL MONDAY AFTERNOON WHEN THE NEXT COLD FRONT IS DUE THROUGH THE REGION. WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO AGGRESSIVELY TURN TO THE NORTHEAST BEHIND THE FRONTAL PASSAGE DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON OR EARLY EVENING HOURS. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES MAY BE A POSSIBILITY FOR THE NEARSHORE WATERS OF LAKE HURON INCLUDING SAGINAW BAY.
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&& .AVIATION...
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ISSUED 138 PM EDT SUN JUN 16 2013 //DISCUSSION... THE JET STREAM AXIS WILL REMAIN IN A WEST TO EAST FASHION DIRECTLY OVER THE GREAT LAKES REGION. THIS WILL MAKE DRY AIR ADVECTION A STUBBORN PROCESS WITHIN THE LOW LEVELS. THERE REMAINS ENOUGH NEAR SURFACE MOISTURE TO CARRY A SLIGHT CHANCE POP FOR A SHOWER OR THUNDERSTORM THIS AFTERNOON BETWEEN 20-23Z. HOWEVER...THE POTENTIAL REMAINS TOO LOW TO CARRY AN EXPLICIT MENTION. ADVECTIONS WILL REMAIN WEAK AGAIN TONIGHT WITH ANY BACKGROUND MIDLEVEL INVERSIONS NON-EXISTENT. BELIEF IS THAT ONCE WE CAN MIX OUT CLOUDS TOWARDS SUNDOWN...SKIES WILL REMAIN SKC FOR THE OVERNIGHT. //DTW THRESHOLD THREATS... * HIGH CONFIDENCE THAT CEILINGS BELOW 5KFT WILL BREAK THIS AFTERNOON. * HIGH CONFIDENCE FOR A VERY LOW THUNDERSTORM PROBABILITY.
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&& .DTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MI...NONE. LAKE HURON...NONE. LAKE ST CLAIR...NONE. MI WATERS OF LAKE ERIE...NONE. && $$ SHORT TERM...CB LONG TERM....BT MARINE.......CB AVIATION.....CB YOU CAN OBTAIN YOUR LATEST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECASTS ONLINE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/DETROIT (ALL LOWER CASE).

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