Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Des Moines, IA

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574 FXUS63 KDMX 162317 AFDDMX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Des Moines IA 617 PM CDT Sun Jun 16 2024 ...Updated for the 00z Aviation Discussion... .KEY MESSAGES... - Strong to severe storms with damaging winds, heavy rain and hail the primary threats. Locally heavy rainfall possible, but the highest amounts look to remain north of the state at this time. - Continued above average temperatures with heat indices in the mid to upper 90s to start the week. - Storm chances return Tuesday night with rain chances lingering through the remainder of the week. Storms Tuesday night could be strong to severe and produce heavy rain. && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 247 PM CDT Sun Jun 16 2024 Earlier this morning, an MCV progressed across the south, bringing with it clouds and some precipitation in the southeast. Temperatures have since then mostly recovered, with far southeastern areas such as Ottumwa likely having highs limited into the 80s this afternoon. Visible satellite imagery has a front tailing from an area of low pressure located in western MN. This front extends down into northwest Iowa and further southwest into Nebraska and Kansas. Connected on the other end of the front is a developing surface low off the Rockies. This low will be pulled to the northeast, placing the connecting boundary near the IA-MN border. At this time, expecting CI to hold off until near or after sunset as the column cools. The limiting factor for daytime convection is 700mb temperatures nearing 12 degrees C. A 50kt+ LLJ will enhance moisture return in the northwest part of the state and assist in rain production towards the end of the night. With CAPE in excess of 2000 J/kg, storms could be strong to severe with damaging winds and hail. Better deep layer shear will be closer to the parent upper low, but the jet from the southwest will provide sufficient shear for organization in the lowest 3km. Given the noticeable moisture in the air, the more obvious concern would be heavy rain. The latest HREF suite keeps the H85 front, thus the highest amounts of precipitation, in southern Minnesota. Still, due to the aforementioned nocturnal jet, northwest Iowa could see rainfall amounts up to 1.5 inches from rain. The boundary will sag into Iowa Monday, but the environment looks capped at this time. Cooler air will be ushered in behind it and with the combination of lingering clouds, high temperatures in the north will be held into the 80s. Highs may underperform elsewhere for a couple of other factors: 1) The thermal ridge is being pulled further north, remaining more to the west of the area 2) Speaking to the noticeable amount of moisture in the atmosphere, the specific heat capacity of water is very high. Consequently, a moist airmass such as this will have a very difficult time pushing well into the 90s. The mugginess will not help the comfortability factor, however. Winds on Monday will be breezy, especially beneath the enhanced flow over the west. Soundings have mean ML winds exceeding 30kts in the afternoon there in the late afternoon hours. Southwest flow will push the boundary back into Minnesota Monday afternoon and keep Monday night dry, but also mild, with lows once again in the 70s. Temperatures will have the same struggles as Monday. Breezy conditions coat more of the state. PWAT values pushing 2 inches will build into the state Tuesday as the constrained low driving the muggy pattern finally is allowed to move east. Its trailing cold front will move across the state Tuesday evening and overnight, giving the state another chance at severe weather and heavy rain. In the long term, the upper level ridge will build into the region more, stalling the aforementioned boundary somewhere nearby and shoving back northwest. As it retreats, Iowa will be back in the warm sector at some point near the end of the work week. As long as this boundary remains somewhere nearby, rain will be in the forecast for parts of the state, especially the north. && .AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z MONDAY/...
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Issued at 617 PM CDT Sun Jun 16 2024 VFR conditions will prevail through the TAF period. Scattered thunderstorms are likely to impact northwest Iowa into southern Minnesota at times tonight and Monday, however they should remain north of the terminals for the most part. MCW is the most likely site to be affected by brief TSRA and associated lower ceilings/visibility, but even there the confidence in occurrence or timing of such impacts is not high enough to justify more than a VCTS group. Amendments may be possible overnight based on short-term convective and observational trends.
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&& .DMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...None. && $$ DISCUSSION...Jimenez AVIATION...Lee