Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Wilmington, NC

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000 FXUS62 KILM 150220 AFDILM AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON NC 1020 PM EDT FRI JUN 14 2013 .SYNOPSIS...
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DRY CONDITIONS AND SEASONABLE DAYTIME TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED FOR THE WEEKEND AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS SOUTHWARD. WARM AND MORE HUMID CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP EARLY NEXT WEEK. THERE WILL BE AN INCREASING RISK OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT...WHICH WILL MOVE INTO THE AREA BY THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK.
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&& .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/...
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AS OF 10 PM FRIDAY...SKIES ARE EXPECTED TO BE CLEAR INTO SAT MORNING AS HIGH PRESSURE CONTINUES TO BUILD SOUTHWARD FROM THE GREAT LAKES AND OHIO VALLEY. WATER VAPOR IMAGERY CLEARLY SHOWS A DRY AIRMASS HAS ADVECTED INTO THE FORECAST AREA AND THIS WILL ALLOW TEMPS TO FALL TO LEVELS LAST EXPERIENCED DURING THE WANING DAYS OF MAY WITH LIGHT TO CALM WINDS. IN FACT...THE TEMP CURVE HAS REQUIRED ADJUSTING THROUGHOUT THE EVE TO ACCOUNT FOR THE RAPID DROP OFF IN TEMPS. MOST OF THE FORECAST AREA SHOULD DROP TO THE LOWER 60S. HOWEVER... RADIATIONAL COOLING SHOULD ALLOW SOME OF OUR MOST RURAL AREAS TO DIP INTO THE UPPER 50S. THE BEACHES SHOULD BE WARMEST OVERNIGHT... MID 60S. THESE TEMPS WILL NOT BE LOW ENOUGH TO SET ANY OFFICIAL RECORDS.
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&& .SHORT TERM /SATURDAY MORNING THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT/... AS OF 3 PM FRIDAY...HIGH PRESSURE WILL CONTROL AREA WEATHER THROUGH THE PERIOD WITH HIGHS IN THE MID TO UPPER 80S AND LOWS IN THE MID 60S SATURDAY NIGHT AND UPPER 60S TO AROUND 70 SUNDAY NIGHT. THERE COULD BE A SLIGHT INCREASE IN CLOUDS SUNDAY NIGHT AS DEBRIS CLOUDS FROM UPSTREAM WEATHER AFFECTS THE AREA. OTHERWISE...FAIR WEATHER IS EXPECTED WITH RELATIVELY LOW HUMIDITY VALUES. && .LONG TERM /MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/... AS OF 3 PM FRIDAY...MID LEVEL PATTERN OVER THE EASTERN CONUS THROUGH THE PERIOD WILL VARY FROM VERY BROAD TROUGHING TO PROGRESSIVE/FLAT FLOW. AS A RESULT THE PERIOD WILL BE ACTIVE CONVECTION WISE BUT WITH LIMITED STRENGTH. FIRST AND STRONGEST FEATURE OF THE PERIOD MOVES ACROSS THE MID ATLANTIC/NORTHEAST TUE. SURFACE LOW IS ENHANCED BY SHORTWAVE CROSSING THE EASTERN CONUS. THE TRAILING COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO THE CAROLINAS TUE EVENING...ACCOMPANIED BY THE PERIODS BEST CHANCE OF RAIN. AHEAD OF THE FRONT INCREASING MOISTURE MON AFTERNOON LEADS TO ISOLATED AFTERNOON/EVENING CONVECTION...MAINLY ALONG AND WEST OF I-95. PRESENTLY ENVIRONMENT DOES NOT APPEAR FAVORABLE FOR ANYTHING MORE THAN ISOLATED WEAK TO MODERATE STORMS. INCREASED COVERAGE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED TUE AFTERNOON AND EVENING AS INCREASING DIURNAL INSTABILITY AND APPROACHING COLD FRONT ENHANCE CONVECTION. MID LEVEL FORCING IS WEAK WITH ONLY MODEST MID LEVEL LAPSE RATES. A SIGNIFICANT EVENT IS NOT EXPECTED BUT CANNOT RULE OUT SOME STRONGER SUMMER TIME TYPE STORMS AT THIS POINT. MEDIUM RANGE GUIDANCE DIVERGES WITH HANDLE OF COLD FRONT WED-FRI. ECMWF KEEPS THE FRONT NEAR THE AREA WITH ABUNDANT MOISTURE AND WIDESPREAD SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS EACH DAY. GFS IS DRIER WED/THU AS IT PUSHES THE FRONT SOUTHEAST AND BRINGS DRIER AIR INTO THE REGION. FRI BOTH GFS.ECMWF PORTRAY A WETTER SOLUTION...THOUGH ARRIVE AT THIS SOLUTION IN DIFFERENT WAYS. GFS LIFTS THE REMAINS OF THE FRONT BACK INTO THE AREA WHILE ECMWF MAINTAINS IT IN THE REGION THROUGH FRI. AT THIS POINT A BLEND OF THE 2 SOLUTIONS COMPARES FAVORABLY TO THE INHERITED FORECAST SO NOT PLANNING MANY CHANGES. TEMPERATURES WILL BE NEAR TO SLIGHTLY ABOVE CLIMO THROUGH THE PERIOD. && .AVIATION /00Z SATURDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... AS OF 00Z...EXPECT VFR TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE VALID PERIOD AS HIGH PRESSURE DOMINATES THE WEATHER PATTERN. NEARLY CLEAR SKIES PREVAIL THIS EVENING WITH NORTHEAST WINDS AOB 10 KTS...BECOMING LIGHT OVER THE NEXT FEW HOURS. THOUGH CONDITIONS ARE IDEAL FOR RADIATIONAL COOLING OVERNIGHT...DO NOT ANTICIPATE ANY FOG DEVELOPMENT GIVEN DRY LOW LEVELS. FOR SATURDAY...LIGHT NORTHEAST WINDS IN THE MORNING WILL BECOME GENERALLY SOUTH IN THE AFTERNOON AOB 10 KTS...AND MAY SEE FEW/SCT DIURNAL CU. EXTENDED OUTLOOK...EXPECT VFR THROUGH SUNDAY. POTENTIAL FOR FOG SUNDAY MORNING. SHOWERS POSSIBLE MONDAY EVENING THROUGH TUESDAY. && .MARINE...
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&& .ILM WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... SC...NONE. NC...NONE. MARINE...NONE. && $$ NEAR TERM...RJD SHORT TERM...XXXI LONG TERM...III AVIATION...SGL

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