Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Quad Cities, IA IL

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415 FXUS63 KDVN 230819 AFDDVN Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Quad Cities IA IL 319 AM CDT Sun Jun 23 2024 .KEY MESSAGES...
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- Much calmer conditions are expected for Sunday, with partly to mostly sunny skies and dry conditions - A somewhat active weather pattern remains for the long-term, with periodic chances of showers and storms, especially for Tuesday and Tuesday night - Hot and humid conditions return for Tuesday
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&& .SHORT TERM /THROUGH MONDAY/...
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Issued at 317 AM CDT Sun Jun 23 2024 A much calmer day is on tap for today, as the cold front that moved through our area last evening has moved off to the southeast. Early this morning, we are seeing an expanding post-frontal layer of clouds building in from the north, which will result in partly to mostly cloudy skies early this morning. However, subsidence from an approaching area of high pressure and dry air filtering in will gradually taper off these clouds, so expect more sunshine later in the day. Additionally, cold air advection and cooling 850 mb temperatures, with values around 14 to 17 degrees C per the GEFS ensembles should also support more seasonal temperatures, with highs in the lower to middle 80s. If you have outdoor plans, today will be a great day for them! As we head into tonight, quiet conditions prevail despite a mid- level trough diving southward across the western Great Lakes. The high pressure system remains with us, which should suppress any precipitation from developing ahead of the trough, so we will maintain a dry forecast through tonight. Temperatures will be relatively cool compared to the last several night, with lows in the 60s. Should be a great night to open your windows!
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&& .LONG TERM /MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY/...
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Issued at 317 AM CDT Sun Jun 23 2024 The long-term forecast period will be a mixed bag, overall, with some dry days and some days with showers and storms. Monday will start us off on a dry note, as the area of high pressure gradually moves eastward. Southerly return flow will help increase theta-e in our region once again, with temperatures warming to the upper 80s to lower 90s and dew points largely in the middle 60s. It won`t feel as muggy as it did Saturday, but it will be warmer and more humid than today. Then, a more active pattern develops for late Monday night through Tuesday night, as a mid-level impulse ejects from the Intermountain West region towards the central Plains, as well as an intensifying upper-level jet along the US/Canadian border, which will result in a deepening trough. Global models are in fairly good agreement with a larger MCS-type system developing over Minnesota and diving southeast along the instability gradient. It is uncertain just how much of our area will be clipped by this system, but if it does, it should result at least some isolated strong wind gusts and small hail in the strongest convection. As we go into the day Tuesday, the aforementioned mid-level impulse moves through in the wake of the MCS, and a surface cold front will sweep through the area from the north. A strongly unstable air mass will be in place ahead of the front, with the GEFS ensemble probabilities of CAPE 3000 J/kg or larger around 50 to 80 percent for our region, owing to hot and humid conditions expected. How strong the overall shear profile will be is a bit more uncertain, given a pretty wide range of 0-6 km shear magnitudes. However, PWAT values will once again be quite high, with both the GEFS and ECMWF ensembles indicating between a 40 to 70 percent chance of PWATs in excess of 1.5 inches. Corfidi forward propagation vectors oriented more west to east parallel to the boundary indicates possible training convection, so heavy rainfall/flash flooding will be possible once again. This thunderstorm activity actually doesn`t appear to end until after sunrise Wednesday morning. In terms of severe weather potential, the CSU ML severe probs continue to paint equivalent of Slight Risk for wind and hail in our area, and as such, SPC has just issued a Slight Risk, or level 2 of 5, for severe weather for us Tuesday, while WPC has a Slight Risk for excessive rainfall, so make sure to stay tuned to the forecast as more details roll out. For Tuesday`s heat and humidity, we are expecting very similar conditions to Saturday, with high temperatures in the lower to middle 90s and dew points in the upper 60s to lower 70s, so it will feel pretty muggy once again. Heat indices between 95 to around 100 degrees will be possible. As we go into the day Wednesday, any lingering showers or storms early Wednesday morning should diminish from increased subsidence from an area of high pressure moving into the area. This high pressure system will remain in control through the day Thursday, resulting in more seasonal temperatures for both Wednesday and Thursday, with highs in the lower to middle 80s. Friday and Saturday could be active, with more chances of showers and storms.
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&& .AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z MONDAY/... Issued at 1240 AM CDT Sun Jun 23 2024 The cold front that brought widespread showers and storms to the area has now just about cleared the forecast area, so showers and storms are done for the local TAF terminals. Attention will then turn to low ceilings filtering in post-frontal, which can be seen expanding across our northern areas in the GOES-East nighttime micro satellite imagery. The expectation is that these MVFR and IFR ceilings will continue to expand southward with time. There is some uncertainty just how low the ceilings will go, especially for DBQ, CID, and MLI, but they should generally be around the cusp of MVFR to IFR. Breezy northwest winds will be with us, as well. Ceilings should improve to VFR by late morning. && .HYDROLOGY... Issued at 959 PM CDT Sat Jun 22 2024 In the Cedar River basin, the most recent rain event underperformed significantly, particularly around the Shell Rock River. This coupled with more soil absorption than expected led to a decrease in flows on the Shell Rock River by as much as 5000 cubic feet per second. When this translated to the Cedar River, many forecasts became lower. Included in this is the Cedar River at Cedar Rapids forecast, which is still likely to reach Moderate flood stage. Some precipitation is still expected before the Cedar River crests towards the middle to end of this week, so we will continue to monitor and update. The Mississippi River is expected to reach flood stage at multiple locations, including the Rock Island gage, by the middle of this week. Long term we expect the Mississippi to reach Moderate and/or Major flood stages the week of the Fourth of July, with the crest at the Rock Island gage possibly reaching just over 18 feet early on the Fourth of July. However, a larger margin of error should be taken into consideration when forecasting precipitation amounts and locations in the 7-10 day timescale. Watches are currently out for most of the Mississippi River and warnings will follow in the next few as a clearer picture is drawn on what precipitation and routed water we have coming downstream. && .DVN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IA...None. IL...None. MO...None. && $$ SHORT TERM...Schultz LONG TERM...Schultz AVIATION...Schultz HYDROLOGY...Wilson