Area Forecast Discussion
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000 FXUS61 KPBZ 201928 AFDPBZ AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA 328 PM EDT MON MAY 20 2013 .SYNOPSIS...
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THE RISK FOR AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH TUESDAY. A BETTER CHANCE FOR WIDESPREAD ACTIVITY ON WEDNESDAY EVENING...AS AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE MOVES THROUGH.
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&& .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM TUESDAY MORNING/...
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CUMULUS DEVELOPMENT THIS AFTERNOON HAS BEEN WIDESPREAD AND FAIRLY PROLIFIC WITH EVEN THE LAST VESTIGES OF THIS MORNING`S STRATUS OVER OHIO BEING DIFFICULT TO GET RID OF. THE COMBINATION OF AMPLE LOW LEVEL MOISTURE...DECENT INSTABILITY...AND WEAK STEERING FLOW HAS ALLOWED FOR ALL OF THIS TO OCCUR THROUGH THE DAY. AS THE EVENING ENSUES...CUMULUS SHOULD GRADUALLY DISSIPATE...HOWEVER CONVECTIVE DEBRIS CLOUDS AND REFORMATION OF SOME AREAS OF STRATUS SEEM A DECENT BET OVERNIGHT. THIS WILL RESULT IS LESS THAN CLEAR SKIES THROUGH THE NIGHT. LOW LEVEL FLOW...WHILE WEAK...SHOULD CONTINUE TO BE LIGHT OUT OF THE SOUTH OVERNIGHT. UPSTREAM DEWPOINT READINGS ARE GENERALLY IN THE MID 60S TO NEAR 70F. WITH THIS IN MIND...AND THE LIKELIHOOD AT LEAST SCATTERED TO BROKEN CLOUDS OVERNIGHT...LOWS SHOULD BE FAIRLY RANGE BOUND BY THE HIGH MOISTURE CONTENT OF THE AIR MASS AND POOR RADIATIONAL COOLING PROSPECTS. AS SUCH...LOWS DROPPING MUCH BELOW THE MID TO UPPER 60S SEEM LIKE A BIT OF STRETCH. HAVE GENERALLY KEPT TEMPERATURES ABOVE GUIDANCE THROUGH THE NIGHT AS A RESULT. FRIES
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&& .SHORT TERM /6 AM TUESDAY MORNING THROUGH THURSDAY/...
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ANOTHER DAY MUCH LIKE TODAY LOOKS TO BE IN STORE ON TUESDAY. ALTHOUGH SOME MODEL SOLUTIONS TRACK A WEAK MID-LEVEL VORT MAXIMUM THROUGH THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF THE CWA EARLY IN THE DAY...THE BEST CHANCES OF SHOWERS SHOULD GENERALLY AGAIN BE RELEGATED TO THE AFTERNOON. DIURNAL INSTABILITY SHOULD BE A BIT MORE PRONOUNCED ON TUESDAY AFTERNOON AS THE LOW LEVEL THERMAL RIDGE ARCHES ACROSS THE AREA DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS. THIS SHOULD ALLOW FOR CAPE VALUES TO ECLIPSE 2000 J/KG PER THE NAM. WITH THAT IN MIND...SHEAR IS ONCE AGAIN RATHER UNIMPRESSIVE...AND GIVEN THE LACK OF LARGE SCALE FORCING DURING THE MOST UNSTABLE PORTION OF THE DAY...RELATIVELY DISORGANIZED ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS SEEM LIKELY DURING THE AFTERNOON. WITH THE LOW LEVEL THERMAL RIDGE SWINGING THROUGH AND SOUNDINGS INDICATING BETTER MIXING DURING THE AFTERNOON TUESDAY...THINGS DO LOOK LIKELY TO HEAT UP NICELY. TEMPERATURES AT 850 MB RUN UP TOWARD +16 TO +18C OR SO ON THE CONSENSUS...WHICH SUGGESTS HIGHS IN THE UPPER 80S WOULD BE LIKELY. THIS IS QUITE WARM FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR AS RECORDS ARE GENERALLY ONLY IN THE LOWER 90S FOR TUESDAY. AS THE SYSTEM CURRENTLY OVER THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY FINALLY WANDERS EASTWARD...THE WEATHER GETS MORE INTERESTING HEADING INTO WEDNESDAY. FIRST OF ALL...A DECENT CONSENSUS ON THE FORMATION OF A LOW LEVEL JET OVER WESTERN OHIO COULD DRIVE DISSIPATING NOCTURNAL CONVECTION INTO SOME OF THE AREA WEDNESDAY MORNING. WHILE THIS WOULD LIKELY INCREASE LOW LEVEL MOISTURE OVER THE AREA...CONVECTIVE DEBRIS MAY MAKE WARMING LESS EFFICIENT ON WEDNESDAY AND LIMIT INSTABILITY. THAT SAID...THE UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM TRUDGING EASTWARD DOESN`T SEEM TO BRING THE BEST SYNOPTIC FORCING INTO THE AREA UNTIL AFTER 00Z/8 PM...WHICH IS WELL PAST THE PRIME DAYTIME INSTABILITY HOURS. HOWEVER...35-40 KTS OF 0-6 KM SHEAR WITH CAPE VALUES IN THE 1500 J/KG RANGE ALONG WITH AN INCOMING SHORTWAVE TROUGH AND UPPER JET RIGHT ENTRANCE REGION DO MEAN WIDESPREAD THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS LIKELY BY WEDNESDAY EVENING. POPS WERE TRANSITIONED A FEW HOURS LATER IN THE FORECAST TO SUGGEST A LATER ARRIVAL OF THE SYSTEM FOR WEDNESDAY EVENING TO ACCOUNT FOR A BIT LATER ARRIVAL OF THE MAIN SYSTEM ITSELF. COLDER AIR FLOODS INTO THE FORECAST AREA STARTING THURSDAY WITH THE UPPER TROUGH AXIS NEARING. AS THIS OCCURS...WE AGAIN DESTABILIZE DUE TO MORE RAPID MID-LEVEL COOLING RATHER THAN LOW LEVEL WARMING. SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM CHANCES WILL THEREFORE CONTINUE THROUGH THURSDAY. FRIES
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&& .LONG TERM /THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY/...
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A COLD FRONT MOVING SLOWLY SOUTH FROM THE GREAT LAKES WILL BRING SHOWERS AND SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS FOR THURSDAY NIGHT. BEHIND THE COLD FRONT FRIDAY THE RISK OF SHOWERS WILL DIMINISH AND TEMPERATURES WILL DROP BELOW NORMAL. DRY WEATHER CAN BE EXPECTED FOR FRIDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY WITH TEMPERATURES FALLING INTO THE 40S FOR OVERNIGHT LOWS SATURDAY AND SUNDAY MORNING.
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&& .AVIATION /19Z MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... BROKEN CUMULUS CEILINGS CAN BE EXPECTED THROUGH THE AFTERNOON WITH THE HEATING OF THE DAY. CEILINGS WILL SLOWLY LIFT FROM MVFR TO VFR BY LATE AFTERNOON. JUST A SLIGHT RISK OF A SHOWER OR ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM INTO THIS EVENING...BUT TOO SMALL A RISK TO PUT INTO THE TAFS. ANOTHER ROUND OF MVFR FOG IS POSSIBLE LATE TONIGHT INTO TUESDAY MORNING. .OUTLOOK.../TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/... CHC FOR SHWR/TSTMS WL RETURN TUE AFTN AND INCR THRU THU EVE AS A CDFNT APRCHS AND MOVES THRU. BLDG HIGH PRES AND VFR CONDS EXPD FRI. && .PBZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MD...NONE. OH...NONE. PA...NONE. WV...NONE. && $$

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