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000
FXUS61 KPBZ 280127
AFDPBZ

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
827 PM EST TUE JAN 27 2015

.SYNOPSIS...
HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD AND DECREASE CLOUDS TONIGHT. A COLD
WEDNESDAY WILL FOLLOW.

&&

.NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING/...
THE DEFORMATION ZONE THAT HAS SLOWLY SAGGED THROUGH THE AREA THIS
EVENING HAS PASSED TO THE SOUTH OF MOST OF THE PITTSBURGH
AREA...WITH ARCTIC AIR RAPIDLY BUILDING IN BEHIND IT. THIS IS
EVIDENCED BY DEWPOINTS FALLING RAPIDLY TOWARD 5F ACROSS AND NORTH
OF THE I-80 CORRIDOR. LIKEWISE...LOW CLOUDS ARE STARTING TO BECOME
SCOURED OUT AT A FAIRLY RAPID CLIP...AND INFRARED FOG PRODUCT
11-3.9 MICRO IMAGERY IS INDICATING A RAPID EROSION OF ALL STRATUS
NORTH OF I-80 AT THIS HOUR. DRIER AIR WILL ADVANCE SOUTHWARD
THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE NIGHT...ALLOWING FOR CLOUDS TO
CONTINUE TO BREAKUP AND TEMPERATURES TO GO INTO FREE FALL. DUE TO
A MUCH LONGER CLEAR/CLEARING PERIOD TO THE NORTH...LOWS WILL
LIKELY CHALLENGE ZERO...HOWEVER EVEN ACROSS THE FAR
SOUTH...TEMPERATURES AROUND 10F SEEM PLAUSIBLE.

AHEAD OF THE DRIER AIR...A FEW MORE HOURS OF UPSLOPE SNOW SHOWERS
SEEM LIKELY FOR THE RIDGES...PARTICULARLY IN WEST VIRGINIA AND
MARYLAND. TRAFFIC CAMS IN BOTH STATES STILL INDICATE FALLING SNOW
AND LESS THAN IDEAL CONDITIONS...SO THE ADVISORIES WILL CONTINUE
GIVEN FAVORABLE DENDRITIC ICE CRYSTAL GROWTH HABIT...LOW LEVEL
INSTABILITY...AND GOOD OROGRAPHIC COMPONENT TO THE LIFT.
HOWEVER...EVEN IN THE RIDGES...DRY AIR WILL DETERIORATE BOUNDARY
LAYER SATURATION AFTER THE NEXT FEW HOURS...SO SNOW SHOWER
ACTIVITY SHOULD WIND DOWN BY MORNING. FRIES

&&

.SHORT TERM /6 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING THROUGH FRIDAY/...
WEDNESDAY HIGHS WERE LIMITED TO ROUGHLY 10 DEGREES UNDR THE AVGS
WITH SFC HIGH PRES SLIDING ACRS THE UPR OH REGION. SHRTWV RIDGING
WL MAINTAIN DRY CONDITIONS THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT...BUT STRENGTHENING
WARM ADVCTN IN ADVN OF TROUGH DIGGING RAPIDLY TWD THE WRN LAKES WL
IMPROVE THE THURSDAY MRNG LOWS.

THE NAM...GFS...ECMWF FORECASTED CENTER TRACK OF THAT SYSTEM RMNS
N OF THE REGION...HENCE CONTD WARM ADVCTN ON THE ERN FLANK IS
EXPECTED TO LIMIT SNOW ACCUMULATION POTENTIAL. HOWEVER...THE
SCENARIO WL FAVOR A WINTRY MIX COMPLICATED BY COLD SURFACES
LEFTOVER OVR FM THE PREVIOUS TWO NGTS.

ANY PCPN THAT DOES TURN TO RAIN WL STILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO
FREEZE ON CONTACT. IN ADDITION...THE DRY LAYER WHICH IS PROGGED TO
LIMIT PCPN ONSET IN THE MRNG MAY OFFSET A WEAKER WARM ADVCTN
REGIME VIA WET BULBING. BOTTOM LINE IS THAT FORECAST WL FEATURE A
WINTRY MIX WITH A CHANGE TO SNOW WITH PASSAGE OF THE SYSTEMS COLD
FRONT ON THURSDAY EVENING. A HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK WAS ALSO
INCLUDED FOR THE FREEZING RAIN POTENTIAL. QPF WAS COMPLETED USING
WPC GUIDANCE TRIMMED FOR LOCAL POP TRENDS WITH SNOW TOTALS
ADJUSTED FOR SFC TEMP EXPECTATIONS.

IN THE WAKE OF THE FRONT...COLD TEMPS WL AGAIN VISIT THE REGION.
DEPTH OF COLD AT MOMENT LKS SUFFICIENT TO SPPRT SNOW SHWRS...SO
LIKELY POPS WERE MAINTAINED OVR THE RIDGES PAST DAYBREAK DESPITE
DRY ADVCTN AND LACK OF ANY REINFORCING LAKE ERIE MSTR DUE TO ICE.

&&

.LONG TERM /FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY/...
COLD ARCTIC HIGH SHIFTS EAST INTO SATURDAY WITH SNOW SHOWERS IN
NORTHWEST FLOW FRIDAY ENDING FRIDAY NIGHT. WITH 850MB TEMPS
PROGGED NEAR -20C BY 00Z SATURDAY TEMPERATURES FRIDAY WILL BE
STEADY OR FALL. CLOUDS SHOULD BEGIN TO BREAK AS CENTER OF HIGH
MOVES INTO REGION FRIDAY NIGHT...WITH LOWS BELOW ZERO NORTH AND
SINGLE DIGITS SOUTH. IF CONDITIONS GO CLEAR AND CALM FRIDAY NIGHT
MAY GO BELOW ZERO ACROSS THE ENTIRE REGION. TEMPERATURES RECOVER
TO MAINLY THE 20S SATURDAY. A SIGNIFICANT STORM LOOKS POSSIBLE FOR
SUNDAY INTO EARLY MONDAY BEFORE ARCTIC AIR RETURNS TO START THE
WORK WEEK.

&&

.AVIATION /02Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/...
ONGOING SNOW SHOWERS WILL BEGIN TO WANE FROM NORTH TO SOUTH AS
DRIER AIR ARRIVES TO CHOKE OFF THE MOISTURE. EXPECTING MVFR
CIGS/VSBY TO CONTINUE IN THE LIGHT SNOW BEFORE FINALLY TAPERING
OFF LAST NEAR KMGW/KLBE AFTER MIDNIGHT. CLOUDS WILL BEGIN TO
SCATTER OUT AS THE DRIER AIR ARRIVES FROM THE NORTH. ALREADY
BEGINNING TO SEE THIS IN DUJ WHERE THE LLVL MOISTURE EVACUATED
LEAVING A MID-DECK LINGERING. CLEARING IS EXPECTED FOR MOST
TERMINALS BY ABOUT DAYBREAK WEDS MORNING...ALTHOUGH SOME SCT LOW
CLOUDS COULD REMAIN NEAR KMGW. WINDS WILL BEGIN TO DISSIPATE
TONIGHT AND THROUGH THE DAY WEDS AS RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS
IN FROM THE WEST.
TAX

.OUTLOOK.../WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/...
WIDESPREAD RESTRICTIONS ARE EXPECTED ON THURSDAY WITH CROSSING LOW
PRESSURE. FREEZING PRECIPITATION IS POSSIBLE AT ALL TERMINALS
THURSDAY WITH PRECIPITATION CHANGING OVER TO SNOW BY MIDNIGHT
FRIDAY. RESTRICTIONS WILL CONTINUE INTO FRIDAY. VFR CONDITIONS ARE
EXPECTED SATURDAY...WITH ANOTHER SET OF RESTRICTIONS POSSIBLE SUNDAY.

&&

.PBZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MD...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 1 AM EST WEDNESDAY FOR MDZ001.
OH...NONE.
PA...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 1 AM EST WEDNESDAY FOR PAZ074-
     076.
WV...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 1 AM EST WEDNESDAY FOR WVZ023-
     041.

&&

$$