Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Albany, NY

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179 FXUS61 KALY 281855 AFDALY AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION National Weather Service Albany NY 255 PM EDT Tue May 28 2024 .SYNOPSIS... Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms possible this afternoon as an upper level disturbance tracks over the region under partly cloudy skies along with much lower humidity. A few showers linger tonight, especially in the higher terrain, before a secondary cold front tomorrow results in increased shower and thunderstorm coverage, especially south of Interstate 90. Much cooler and drier air arrives Thursday before a warming trend ensues for the weekend. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/...
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Our upper level trough and associated cold pool aloft continue advancing eastward across eastern NY into western New England today. Scattered showers have developing along the leading edge of the cold pool with showers now in the Mohawk Valley, Capital District into southern VT which continue pushing southward. Morning clouds have given way to more breaks of sun as mid- level moisture dries out and deeper mixing ensues beneath the steepening lapse rates. Speaking of steeper mid-level lapse rates, a few isolated to scattered non-severe thunderstorms are possible this afternoon thanks to lapse rates reaching 6.5 - 7C/km under the incoming cold pool. SPC has outlined our entire area in general thunder which matches with our expectation. Some brief downpours are possible under any short-lived storm. Otherwise, the deeper boundary layer mixing has kept winds breezy with southwesterly to westerly gusts up to 25kts, especially down the Mohawk Valley into the Capital District due to channeled flow. With mild air still in place aloft (10C at 850hPa on the ALY 12 UTC sounding), afternoon high temperatures should reach into the mid to upper 70s with even low 80s in the mid-Hudson Valley. Cooler temperatures in the southern Adirondacks and southern Greens thanks to increased cloud coverage only reaching into the 60s. Temperatures in the wake of the scattered showers likely trend cooler in the low to mid 70s. Heading into tonight, moist cyclonic flow continues as the upper level disturbance and trough tracks overhead. This will keep cloud coverage and milder temperatures around. Some showers are still possible, especially in the southern Adirondacks, northern Catskills and southern Greens, as westerly flow upslopes the terrain. Overnight lows only drop into the mid to upper 50s thanks to the clouds.
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&& .SHORT TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/... Our upper level trough and cold pool aloft remains overhead for tomorrow with a secondary cold front and trough axis on the approach. The moist cyclonic flow will keep skies partly to mostly cloudy once again, especially once we reach our respective convective temperature. High temperatures fall a few degrees below Tuesday`s highs only reaching into the low to mid 70s with 60s in the hill towns and higher terrain. As a secondary cold front tracks through the region from northwest to southeast midday into the afternoon, winds shift from westerly to northerly and look to provide decent low-level forcing to generate scattered showers. Dew points rise into the mid-50s south of I-90 which, when combined with steepening mid-level lapse rates reaching 6.5 to 7C/km, will support sufficient instability. CAMs and high res guidance are in good agreement with SB CAPE values climb up to 500 - 1000J/kg by midday into the afternoon. As the wind shift boundary and upper level trough approach, a few thunderstorms will likely develop with the best chances near and south of I-90. Severe weather is not expected but any storm can produce brief downpours. Troughing continues into Wednesday night with our wind shift boundary/secondary cold front stalling near or just south of the mid-Hudson Valley, eastern Catskills, and NW CT. With a compact shortwave rotating around the base of the trough and interacting with the boundary overnight, additional showers are possible again mainly south of I-90 Wednesday night. Some lingering instability Wednesday evening could support isolated thunderstorms. Incoming dry air across the southern Adirondacks, Mohawk Valley, and Upper Hudson Valley will support at least partial clearing skies overnight while areas south of I-90 likely stay mainly cloudy. Where clouds can partially clear temperatures should cool into the low to mid 40s thanks to the northerly wind shift advecting in a cooler and drier air mass. Areas further south should remain milder in the low to mid 50s thanks to the clouds. Expecting a seasonably cool and mainly dry day for Thursday as northerly winds advect in a cooler and much drier air mass from Canada. With the boundary shifting further south and the shortwave from Wednesday night exiting into New England by early morning, Thursday has trended drier. In fact, morning clouds should given way to increasing sun through the day with decreasing dew points. PWATs even drop to 0.30 - 0 50" as northerly winds become a bit breezy during the afternoon as large scale high pressure builds into western NY/PA tightening the sfc pressure gradient. Increased winds a bit from NBM to show winds gusts reaching up to 20kts during diurnal peaking heating hours. While the incoming air mass is quite cool (850 hPa isotherms +5 to +7C), the enhanced boundary layer mixing should help afternoon temperatures reach into the low 70s in the Hudson and Mohawk Valley with low to mid 60s in the hill towns and higher terrain. Otherwise, POPs has trended lower with only slight chance POPs now for portions of western New England and rain-free forecast elsewhere. Ideal radiational cooling expected Thursday night thanks to clearing skies and northerly winds maintaining a cool/dry Canadian air mass. With dew points dropping into the 30s to low 40s and winds turning light/variable in response to high pressure building eastward, expecting chilly temperatures Thursday night. Blended in NBM10th percentile guidance to capture the chilly temperature potential. Morning lows should drop into the mid to upper 40s with upper 30s to low 40s in the southern Adirondacks and southern Greens. && .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/...
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A stretch of very pleasant summer-like weather is expected Friday through the beginning of next week. Our upper level trough exits out to sea on Friday with subsidence building into the Northeast for the weekend as an amplified ridge axis builds eastward. This will provide a stretch of dry weather and comfortable humidity levels as northerly winds on the east side of the incoming ridge maintain a fetch of dry air from Canada directed into the Northeast. Temperatures initially will start out seasonable but trend warmer through the weekend as the upper level ridge axis shifts into New England, allowing a southwesterly return flow. Highs likely reach into the upper 70s to low 80s Saturday and Sunday before trending even warmer by Monday and Tuesday. The ridging will support plenty of sunshine this weekend so it will feel even warmer when out in the sun. There are some discrepancies on how the pattern evolves by early next week as guidance indicates the potential for some shortwaves to track into the Northeast which support some scattered showers and thunderstorms but there is still too much spread to pin point the exact location, durations or coverage of any precipitation activity. We show slight chance and chance POPs increasing in coverage by early next week to represent this potential.
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&& .AVIATION /19Z TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... Through 18Z Wednesday...All terminals currently seeing VFR conditions, which should generally be the theme through the rest of the afternoon. Scattered showers are expected across the region this afternoon, and some brief MVFR vsby reductions are possible if any showers move over one of the terminals. Have handled this with VCSH and tempo groups through this afternoon. Showers diminish early tonight with the loss of daytime heating. Another batch of showers is possible tonight, mainly between 6-12z at GFL and possibly ALB/PSF. Initially VFR conditions trend down to MVFR at these TAF sites after 6z, lasting through around or shortly after sunrise. Tomorrow morning, any MVFR cigs lift back to VFR with dry conditions to start the day. Additional showers develop by late morning at ALB/PSF/POU, so have included VCSH groups at these TAF sites for the last few hours of the TAF valid period. Outside of showers, mainly SCT to BKN mid-level clouds and VFR conditions should prevail tomorrow morning. Winds will be from the west/southwest this afternoon at 5-10 kt with some gusts of 15-20 kt, especially at ALB/PSF. WInds diminish to around 5-8 kt from the west at ALB/PSF after sunset tonight, and become light and variable at 5 kt or less at GFL/POU. Winds tomorrow morning increase to 5-10 kt from the west at ALB, but remain at 5 kt or less from the west/northwest at all other terminals. Outlook... Wednesday Night: Low Operational Impact. Isolated SHRA...TSRA. Thursday: Low Operational Impact. NO SIG WX. Thursday Night: No Operational Impact. NO SIG WX. Friday: No Operational Impact. NO SIG WX. Friday Night: No Operational Impact. NO SIG WX. Saturday: No Operational Impact. NO SIG WX. Saturday Night: No Operational Impact. NO SIG WX. Sunday: No Operational Impact. NO SIG WX. && .FIRE WEATHER...
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Thursday, the combination of temperatures in the 60s to 70s and dew points in the 30s to 40s will lead to minimum RH values between 30 and 40%. Northwesterly wind gusts may reach 15-20 mph as well during the afternoon. Most areas saw at least a quarter to half inch of rain yesterday, and additional showers are expected this afternoon and again tomorrow. While this should limit the overall fire weather concerns, special weather statements may be considered depending on the coverage of showers today/tomorrow and how much fuels dry out between now and Thursday.
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&& .ALY WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... CT...None. NY...None. MA...None. VT...None. && $$ SYNOPSIS...Speciale NEAR TERM...Speciale SHORT TERM...Speciale LONG TERM...Speciale AVIATION...Main FIRE WEATHER...Main