Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Boston, MA

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451 FXUS61 KBOX 070214 AFDBOX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Boston/Norton MA 1014 PM EDT Thu Jun 6 2024 .SYNOPSIS... A second round of scattered showers and thunderstorms should cross the region late this afternoon and evening. Unsettled conditions continue with scattered showers and thunderstorms Friday through Monday, but it will not be a washout on any of those days. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH FRIDAY/...
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1010 PM update... Area of convective showers along a weak boundary moving east across CT and central MA. There is marginal elevated instability so can`t rule out a rumble of thunder during the next hour but activity expected to weaken as it moves into eastern MA with mainly dry conditions after midnight. Dense fog still impacting portions of eastern MA coast but it is patchy and mostly confined to Cape/Islands. Fog will likely persist overnight and vsbys may drop again along the coast so will keep the dense fog advisory. Vsbys will improve toward daybreak as winds shift to NW behind the weak front.
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&& .SHORT TERM /FRIDAY NIGHT/... Tricky forecast for Friday. it looks like our region will get on the back side of a cool front to start the day, only to have another weak low pressure potentially approach late in the day. While humidity will be considerably less than what we had in place today, it should still be enough to support a few showers. Thinking the risk for thunderstorms has diminished across southern New England. More sunshine will mean higher max temperatures region-wide. Humidity should continue to drop slightly Friday night. Mainly clear skies and light SW to W winds should keep the stratus and fog at bay. Above normal temperatures continue. && .LONG TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/... Highlights * Unsettled Friday through Sunday with several chances for rain and isolated Thunderstorms * Pattern improvement delayed until early/mid next week as low pressure over southern Canada is displaced by building mid- level ridge Friday... Broad upper level low that has been slowly creeping towards New England from the northwest sets up shop over the Great Lakes/southern Canada by early Friday. Several shortwaves will rotate around the low, the first of which develops mid day Friday while somewhat of a seabreeze/back door coastal front drops south out of Maine. While the dynamics of the day don`t look super impressive, thinking that some scattered showers and thunderstorms will be able to develop in the convergence zone of the two "forcing features" where some modest instability, ~600J/kg SBCAPE is present. 0-6km bulk shear also looks to be supportive of thunderstorm development, topping out around 60kt Friday afternoon! At present, this convergence zone appears to set up between Worcester and Boston along I-495, but may shift over the next 24 hours. The limiting factors in storm coverage and strength are typical of southern New England with lackluster mid level lapse rates, less than 5C/km, and decreasing PWATs as surface cold front approaches from the west; PWATs drop from near 1.8" early Friday to 1". So, while the severe potential remains very low, cant rule out some solid downpours and gusty winds Friday afternoon. Overall, should see a mix of sun and showers with a moderate mugginess to the air with dewpoints in the low and mid 60s the first half of the day. Saturday and Sunday... Unsettled conditions continue Saturday and Sunday, though neither day appears to be a washout with a few more shortwaves rotating around the persistent upper level low. Saturday looks to be the drier of the two days as PWATs fall to around 0.8" behind surface cold front that passes through overnight. Guidance is split on the shower potential, with more coarse resolution global guidance, like the GFS, trending towards a drier day and hi-res guidance like the NAM initiating more widespread shower activity Saturday afternoon. Dynamics appear to be more supportive of thunderstorms, compared to Friday, as mid level lapse rates increase to ~6C/km and low level lapse rates approach 8.5C/km, but instability appears to be quite poor, around 200J/kg. PWATs surge back towards 1.25-1.4" early Sunday with a similar dynamic setup, which will yield more showers and isolated Thunderstorms compared to Saturday. Still, not expecting a washout, with a mix of sun and showers. Early next week and beyond... Very persistent mid level trough/low pressure over Canada, remains near stationary through early next week. Guidance shows stronger shortwave development in the Monday period that could bring a more substantial shot of QPF to the region, before a brief reprieve from unsettled conditions develops Tuesday/Wednesday with some indication that strong mid level ridging develops during that timeframe. While ridging looks robust, temperatures look seasonably mild rather than hot, with highs in the 80s. && .AVIATION /02Z FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... Forecast Confidence Levels: Low - less than 30 percent. Moderate - 30 to 60 percent. High - greater than 60 percent. Tonight...Moderate confidence. Isolated thunderstorms dissipate quickly thru 02Z tonight with little chance of making it east of ORH. Light shower activity possible through 04/05Z, primarily north of the MA/Turnpike. VLIFR along the immediate eastern coastline, including the Cape, with a gradient towards MVFR and perhaps pockets of VFR at western terminals like BDL. E winds back to the NW behind frontal passage tonight, which will allow vsbys to improve close to sunrise. Friday...Moderate confidence. Any lingering dense fog stratus will dissipate in the morning, otherwise VFR. Scattered showers developing in the afternoon, mainly north of the Mass Pike. SW wind 5-15 kt, with sea-breezes developing along the coast. Friday Night...Moderate confidence. Mainly VFR. SW to W winds 5-15 kt. KBOS TAF...High confidence in trends, moderate in timing. TEMPO between dense fog with 1/4SM and 1SM as light showers impact the terminal between 02-04Z tonight. No significant improvement until winds shift from the E to the NW behind frontal boundary. MVFR to VFR will develop on Friday but may take some time with light winds. Seabreeze possible after 17Z. KBDL TAF...Moderate confidence. MVFR to VFR, light shower activity wanes by 03Z. Patchy fog possible. Outlook /Saturday through Tuesday/... Saturday through Saturday Night: VFR. Breezy. Slight chance SHRA. Sunday: VFR. Breezy. Chance SHRA. Sunday Night through Monday: VFR. Slight chance SHRA. Monday Night: VFR. Tuesday: VFR. Slight chance SHRA. && .MARINE... Forecaster Confidence Levels: Low - less than 30 percent. Medium - 30 to 60 percent. High - greater than 60 percent. Moderate confidence through Friday Night. Main concern across the coastal waters will be reduced visibility in fog tonight, visibility improves Friday into Friday Night. Marginal 5-foot seas continue, so maintained the Small Craft Advisory. Outlook /Saturday through Tuesday/... Saturday through Saturday Night: Winds less than 25 kt. Areas of seas approaching 5 ft. Sunday: Winds less than 25 kt. Areas of seas approaching 5 ft. Chance of rain showers. Sunday Night: Winds less than 25 kt. Seas locally approaching 5 ft. Slight chance of rain showers. Monday through Monday Night: Winds less than 25 kt. Tuesday: Winds less than 25 kt. Slight chance of rain showers. && .BOX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... CT...None. MA...Dense Fog Advisory until 8 AM EDT Friday for MAZ007-015-016- 019-022>024. RI...None. MARINE...Small Craft Advisory until 8 PM EDT Friday for ANZ254. Small Craft Advisory until 7 AM EDT Saturday for ANZ255-256. && $$ SYNOPSIS...Belk/KS NEAR TERM...KJC SHORT TERM...Belk LONG TERM...RM AVIATION...Belk/KS MARINE...Belk/KS