Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Blacksburg, VA

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000 FXUS61 KRNK 131137 AFDRNK AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA 737 AM EDT THU JUN 13 2013 .SYNOPSIS... A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL SWEEP ACROSS THE REGION TODAY BRINGING STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS INTO THE EVENING. MUCH COOLER AND DRIER AIR WILL FOLLOW THE FRONT AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS IN FROM THE NORTHWEST ON FRIDAY. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... AS OF 440 AM EDT THURSDAY... WATER VAPOR LOOP SHOWED TWO WELL DEFINED SHORT WAVES CROSSING THE GREAT LAKES THIS MORNING. AT THE SURFACE...A SQUALL LINE WAS CROSSING INTO WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA AND NORTHWEST WEST VIRGINIA. THIS WAS WELL AHEAD OF THE SURFACE COLD FRONT THAT EXTENDED FROM INDIANA INTO SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. A WARM FRONT WAS ACROSS OHIO INTO SOUTHERN MARYLAND. MODELS REMAINED SIMILAR IN TIMING AND PLACEMENT OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS COMING THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA TODAY. AT THIS TIME THE MOST UNSTABLE AIR EXTENDED FROM WEST VIRGINIA INTO KENTUCKY. DOWNDRAFT CONVECTIVE AVAILABLE POTENTIAL ENERGY AHEAD OF THE STORMS HAD BEEN AROUND THE 1200 J/KG RANGE FOR SINCE MIDNIGHT. THE LOW LEVEL JET HAD BEEN INCREASING OVERNIGHT FROM THE WEST WITH SPEEDS NOW INTO THE 40-50 KNOT RANGE...AND 850-300 MB WINDS WERE FROM THE WEST AROUND 50 KNOTS. WITH THE DEEP WEST WIND...STORMS WILL LIKELY WEAKEN AS THEY CROSS INTO THE MOUNTAINS AND THE ADJACENT EAST SLOPES OF THE BLUE RIDGE. BUT ENOUGH HEATING BY THIS AFTERNOON IN THE PIEDMONT...MAINLY EAST OF A LYNCHBURG TO REIDSVILLE LINE THAT THUNDERSTORMS WILL RE-INTENSIFY OR RE-DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON. BEST PROBABILITY OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS REMAINS IN THE FAR WEST AND FAR EAST PARTS OF THE COUNTY WARNING AREA. FRONT WILL CROSS THE FORECAST AREA BETWEEN 8AM AND 8PM. WINDS WILL BE GUSTY OUT OF THE WEST TO SOUTHWEST AHEAD OF THE FRONT. MODELS SHOWED PRESSURE RISES OF 3 TO 5 MB PER 6 HOURS BEHIND THE FRONT WITH 30 TO 40 KNOT 850 MB WINDS. STRONG GUSTY NORTHWEST WINDS BEHIND THE FRONT WILL BRING IN A COOLER AIR MASS WITH 850 MB TEMPERATURES DOWN TO +10 BY 12Z FRIDAY AND SURFACE DEW POINTS INTO THE 50S AND LOWER 60S. LEANED TOWARD BIAS CORRECTED MAV GUIDANCE FOR MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES TODAY AND A BLEND OR MAV/MET GUIDANCE FOR LOWS TONIGHT. && .SHORT TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT/... AS OF 345 AM EDT THURSDAY... ANOMALOUS H5 TROUGH DRIVES H85 TEMPS BELOW 10C INTO SE WEST VA FOR FRIDAY. JUST ENOUGH LLVL MOISTURE IN THE MODEL SOUNDINGS FOR SOME MOUNTAIN STRATO CU ACROSS SE WEST VA...WHICH WILL PROBABLY MIX OUT LATE DAY. SOME SPOTS ACROSS SE WEST VA MAY NOT REACH 70F. A BREEZY DAY WITH SOME GUSTS TO 30 MPH WITH MUCH LESS CLOUDINESS ELSEWHERE. AFTER A CHILLY SATURDAY MORNING THE DEEP BUT SKINNY TROUGH IS GONE BY SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND WAA ENSUES. THE UPPER PATTERN WILL REMAIN ZONAL THIS WEEKEND AS AN UPPER RIDGE MOVES EAST AND EXPANDS FROM THE GULF COAST TO THE SOUTHEASTERN STATES. DISTURBANCES EJECTED FROM THE CURRENT GYRE OVER THE PAC NW WILL TAKE A WEST TO EAST ROUTE...ARRIVING BY EARLY NEXT WEEK...AND DRAWING JUST ENOUGH MOISTURE FROM THE GULF FOR THE NEXT RAIN OPPORTUNITY SUNDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY. TEMPS SHOULD RETURN TO THE LOW TO MIDDLE 80S ON SUNDAY TOO. && .LONG TERM /MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... AS OF 115 PM EDT WEDNESDAY... EXPECT ANOTHER ACTIVE PERIOD AT LEAST FOR SUNDAY NIGHT-TUESDAY AS ANOTHER FRONT MAKES ITS WAY TOWARD AND THROUGH THE AREA. SUNDAY...LOOKING AT HIGH PRESSURE MOVING OFFSHORE SETTING OUR AREA UP IN THE RETURN FLOW AND INCREASED HUMIDITY. SUNDAY WILL BE A DAY OF TYPICAL SHOWER/STORM DEVELOPMENT IN THE MTNS. AS WE HEAD INTO MONDAY-TUESDAY...FRONTAL SYSTEM MOVES FROM GREAT LAKES-CENTRAL PLAINS SOUTHEAST INTO THE MID ATLANTIC SOUTHWEST TO THE LOWER OHIO VALLEY. MODELS SIMILAR OVERALL BUT TIMING INDIVIDUAL CLUSTERS OF SHORTWAVES WILL BE PROBLEMATIC. STILL LOOKS LIKE AN ACTIVE PATTERN WHERE 2-3 ROUNDS OF SHOWERS/STORMS WILL MOVE ACROSS. FRONT APPEARS TO FINALLY INCH SOUTHEAST OF OUR AREA BY WEDNESDAY WITH DRIER AIR MOVING IN FOR AT LEAST ONE OR TWO DAYS. && .AVIATION /12Z THURSDAY THROUGH MONDAY/...
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AS OF 735 AM EDT THURSDAY... A LINE OF STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WAS OVER NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA AT 7AM. MODELS ARE SIMILAR WITH THE TIMING OF AN ORGANIZED AREA OF SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS. EXPECT THE STORMS TO REACH LWB AROUND 13Z/9AM. THE THREAT OF THUNDERSTORMS HOLDS OFF AT KBLF/KROA/KBCB UNTIL AFTER 14Z/10AM. WEST WINDS MAY WEAKEN THE SHOWERS AND STORMS OVER ROA AND BCB BUT THEN LOOK FOR THUNDERSTORMS TO REORGANIZE ALONG OR EAST OF THE MOUNTAINS THIS AFTERNOON. STRONG WINDS POSSIBLE WITH THE THUNDERSTORMS...ESPECIALLY AT KDAN AND KLYH AFTER 19Z/3PM. CONFIDENCE IS HIGH ON THE TIMING OF THE COLD FRONT. ASIDE FROM THE THUNDERSTORMS...WINDS WILL BE GUSTY TODAY BOTH AHEAD OF THE FRONT. THE FRONT WILL BE EAST OF THE REGION THIS EVENING WITH GUSTY NORTHWEST WINDS THROUGH MIDNIGHT. HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD IN FRIDAY AND SATURDAY RESULTING IN VFR WEATHER. MAY SEE FOG AT THE TYPICAL LOCATIONS SUNDAY MORNING... KLWB/KBCB...OTHERWISE VFR. LOW LEVEL SOUTHERLY FLOW RETURNS ON SUNDAY AHEAD OF ANOTHER FRONT MOVING INTO THE MIDWEST/GREAT LAKES. THIS WILL LIKELY BRING ISOLATED STORMS TO THE MOUNTAINS SUNDAY AFTERNOON...WITH BETTER COVERAGE ACROSS THE REGION MONDAY AHEAD OF THE BOUNDARY.
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&& .RNK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... VA...NONE. NC...NONE. WV...NONE. && $$ SYNOPSIS...AMS NEAR TERM...AMS SHORT TERM...KM LONG TERM...WP AVIATION...AMS

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