-- Discussion containing changed information from previous version are highlighted. --
000
FXUS61 KRLX 271311
AFDRLX

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
801 AM EST FRI FEB 27 2015

.SYNOPSIS...
ARCTIC AIR TODAY. HIGH PRESSURE TONIGHT INTO SATURDAY. CLIPPER LATE
IN THE WEEKEND. ANOTHER LOW EARLY TO MID WEEK.

&&

.NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/...
LAST OF THE SQUEEZE PLAY GOING ON EARLY THIS MORNING WITH FLUFFY
SNOW SHOWERS OVER THE MOUNTAIN COUNTIES. THE BACK EDGE OF THE
OVERCAST AND THE SNOW SHOWERS MAINLY EAST OF I-79 TO CRW TO NEAR
KERMIT. MOSTLY LESS THAN AN INCH OF FLUFF NEXT FEW HOURS OVER
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES. AS MENTIONED YESTERDAY...THE HOURLY TEMPERATURE
MAY STILL GO DOWN THROUGH ABOUT 14/15Z.

&&

.SHORT TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY/...
SATURDAY IS SHAPING UP TO BE BEST DAY BY FAR IN THE SHORT TERM
PERIODS. JUST LOOKING AT SOME MID AND HI CLOUDS FROM TIME TO TIME
AMID TEMPS IN THE UPPER 20S N TO LOW TO MID 30S S. BY SATURDAY
EVENING...STRONG SFC HIGH WILL BE SHIFTING INTO NEW ENGLAND AS A
WARM FRONT DEVELOPS ACROSS THE AREA. THIS WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY
SUBTLE VORT MAXES ZIPPING THRU THE FAST ZONAL FLOW ALOFT. APPEARS SE
OH WILL SEE BEST SHOT OF PRECIP BREAKING OUT IN RESPONSE TO THIS AND
GOOD ISENTROPIC LIFT LATE SATURDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY MORNING.
THERMAL PROFILES SUPPORT PRIMARILY SNOW WITH THIS WHERE A FEW INCHES
MAY ACCUMULATE ACROSS PERRY COUNTY. WILL INSERT A MENTION IN HWO
FOR POTENTIAL HEADLINES FOR PERRY COUNTY. ELSEWHERE...THERE MAY BE
ANOTHER BAND OF LIGHT WAA PRECIP OVER SW VA/S AND C WV/NE KY ZONES
FIRST HALF OF SUNDAY. THIS MAY TAKE THE FORM OF A BRIEF MIX ACROSS S
ZONES SUNDAY MORNING. AS SUNDAY PROGRESSES...S ZONES MAY DRY OUT IN
THE AFTERNOON WITH WAA LIGHT PRECIP SHIFTING INTO N WV MAINLY IN THE
FORM OF RAIN. HAVE TEMPS SPIKING INTO THE UPPER 40S ALONG AND S OF
I64 WITH UPPER 30S TO MID 40S FURTHER N.

SUNDAY NIGHT WILL FEATURE AFOREMENTIONED WARM FRONT SAGGING SE AS A
COLD FRONT WITH HELP OF SURFACE HIGH TRYING TO NOSE INTO OH VALLEY
FROM THE UPPER MIDWEST. RAIN SHOWERS WILL TRY TO CHANGE TO SNOW WITH
FROPA BUT MOISTURE WILL BE WANING FOR ANY MEANINGFUL ACCUMULATION
OUTSIDE OF THE MOUNTAINS. ACROSS THE N MOUNTAINS...THERMAL PROFILES
REMAIN ON THE COLD SIDE IN THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS FOR A FEW INCHES TO
ACCUMULATE SUNDAY NIGHT. HAVE TEMPS SLOWLY FALLING BUT STILL KEEP S
HALF OF CWA ABOVE FREEZING.

FOR MONDAY...AFOREMENTIONED HIGH PRESSURE WILL SCOOT ACROSS THE
UPPER OH VALLEY INTO PA BY EVENING. THIS WILL ALLOW FOR A MAINLY DRY
DAY AFTER MORNING MOUNTAIN SNOW SHOWERS. WILL BE DEALING WITH SOME
MID AND HIGH CLOUDS THOUGH. TEMPS WILL RUN AROUND 40 S ZONES...TO
MID 30S ACROSS SE OH AND N WV.

&&

.LONG TERM /MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY/...
ACTIVE WEATHER PATTERN IN THE LONG TERM...WITH LOTS OF UNCERTAINTY
IN THE DETAILS. FRONTAL BOUNDARY SOUTH OF THE CWA AT THE BEGINNING
OF THE PERIOD...WITH HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING IN BRIEFLY FROM THE
NORTH. HOWEVER...THIS WILL BE SHORT LIVED AS ANOTHER LOW WILL MOVE
EAST OUT OF THE PLAINS TOWARDS THE REGION. THERE COULD BE A BRIEF
PERIOD OF SLEET OR FREEZING RAIN EARLY TUESDAY MORNING AT THE ONSET
OF PRECIPITATION...BEFORE ENOUGH WARM AIR IS ABLE TO SCOUR OUT ANY
COLD AIR NEAR THE SURFACE. WITH A GOOD SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW
DEVELOPING...EXPECTING A CHANGE OVER TO RAIN BY TUESDAY
AFTERNOON...EVEN ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS.

AS MENTIONED IN PREVIOUS DISCUSSIONS...THERE WILL BE A GOOD TAP OF
GULF MOISTURE...AND THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR A SECONDARY LOW TO
RIDE UP OUT OF THE GULF INTO THE SOUTHEASTERN U.S. MID TO LATE
WEEK...BUT MODELS ARE NOT IN GOOD AGREEMENT IN THE PATH/MOISTURE
SPREAD ASSOCIATED WITH THIS FEATURE AT THIS TIME.

SO...POINT IS...WITH AT LEAST 1 FEATURE EXPECTED EARLY NEXT
WEEK...WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR HEAVY RAIN...AND A DECENT SNOW PACK IN
PLACE IN SOME LOCATIONS...PARTICULARLY SOME OF THE MOUNTAINOUS
LOCATIONS...WATER ISSUES ARE POSSIBLE. PARTICULARLY...IF THE
SECONDARY FEATURE WOULD HAPPEN TO DEVELOP...AND SPREAD A SECONDARY
ROUND OF PRECIPITATION ACROSS PARTS OF THE AREA LATE WEEK AFTER THE
INITIAL SHOT. HOWEVER...ANOTHER ISSUE WITH THE SECONDARY FEATURE IS
THAT BASED ON THE PATH...COULD EVEN SEE PERIODS OF SNOW...NOT JUST
RAIN. SO...LOTS OF UNCERTAINTY IN AMOUNT/RATE OF SNOW MELT...AND
EVEN IN PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS AND TYPES AT TIMES NEXT WEEK.

SO...IN A NUTSHELL...WILL GO AHEAD AND HIGHLIGHT THE RISK FOR
POTENTIAL FLOODING NEXT WEEK IN THE HWO...AS FEEL THERE IS AT LEAST
SOME RISK WITH THE FIRST FEATURE EARLY/MID WEEK.

&&

.AVIATION /13Z FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/...
A BAND OF SNOW ALONG THE ARCTIC FRONT PRODUCING IFR RESTRICTIONS AT
TIMES WILL GRADUALLY DIMINISH EARLY THIS MORNING. SOME CLEARING CAN
BE EXPECTED BEHIND THE ARCTIC FRONT IN KY...OH...AND WESTERN WEST
VIRGINIA. UPSLOPE WILL SLOW THE PROGRESSION OF THE CLEARING IN
EASTERN WV AND SW VA. EVENTUALLY THE DRY AIR BEHIND THE ARCTIC FRONT
WILL WIN...WITH CLOUDS SCATTERING TODAY EVEN IN THE MOUNTAINS...AND
CLEARING THIS EVENING.

FORECAST CONFIDENCE AND ALTERNATE SCENARIOS THROUGH 12Z SATURDAY...

FORECAST CONFIDENCE: MEDIUM.

ALTERNATE SCENARIOS: TIMING OF CLOUD DECK CLEARING COULD VARY.

EXPERIMENTAL TABLE OF FLIGHT CATEGORY OBJECTIVELY SHOWS CONSISTENCY
OF WFO FORECAST TO AVAILABLE MODEL INFORMATION:
H = HIGH:   TAF CONSISTENT WITH ALL MODELS OR ALL BUT ONE MODEL.
M = MEDIUM: TAF HAS VARYING LEVEL OF CONSISTENCY WITH MODELS.
L = LOW:    TAF INCONSISTENT WITH ALL MODELS OR ALL BUT ONE MODEL.

UTC 1HRLY       11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22
EST 1HRLY       06   07   08   09   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17
CRW CONSISTENCY  M    M    M    M    H    H    M    M    M    M    H    H
HTS CONSISTENCY  H    H    H    H    H    H    H    M    H    H    H    H
BKW CONSISTENCY  H    H    H    H    M    H    H    H    H    H    H    H
EKN CONSISTENCY  M    M    L    M    M    H    H    H    H    H    H    H
PKB CONSISTENCY  H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H
CKB CONSISTENCY  M    M    M    H    H    H    H    M    M    M    M    M

AFTER 12Z SATURDAY...
IFR POSSIBLE IN RAIN OR MIXED RAIN/SNOW SUNDAY INTO MONDAY.

&&

.RLX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WV...NONE.
OH...NONE.
KY...NONE.
VA...NONE.

&&

$$
SYNOPSIS...RPY/SL/30
NEAR TERM...KTB
SHORT TERM...30
LONG TERM...SL
AVIATION...RPY