Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS
Issued by NWS
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352 FXUS62 KTAE 041429 AFDTAE Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Tallahassee FL 1029 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 ...New UPDATE, MARINE... .UPDATE... Issued at 1011 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 No major changes to today`s forecast were required. Overnight and early-morning convection has pivoted east of Ben Hill-Irwin-Berrien County in response to a swinging shortwave directly overhead. Rain chances through 15Z were trimmed eastward to account. A temporary lull in activity is expected before more showers/thunderstorms pop- up this afternoon. The 12Z HRRR suggests initiation south of I-10 as soon as 17Z along the seabreeze. This solution seems reasonable given the SE low-level flow and developing cumulus from the Forgotten Coast towards the FL Panhandle. As the day progresses, convective coverage increases while slowly drifting east towards the middle of the Tri-State area with additional storms forming over Southern AL this evening. The latter is likely attributed to an upstream shortwave noted on vapor imagery moving through the ArkLaTex region. Environmental conditions are favorable for some strong storms capable of gusty winds, frequent lightning, and locally heavy downpours. The 12Z TAE sounding depicts an anomalously moist airmass with adequate instability and light low-level flow. In fact, a Precipitable Water value of 1.52" analyzed this morning is near the daily 90th percentile. As such, there is some concern for isolated heavy rainfall from slow-moving and/or merging cells, especially along/east of the Apalachicola River. There is better potential for gusty winds farther west where forecast DCAPE values reach the 800-900 J/kg range. && .NEAR TERM... (Today and tonight) Issued at 338 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 Satellite shows the axis of an approaching shortwave currently over Alabama this morning. This shortwave will rotate across the area through the day, leading to scattered to widespread showers and thunderstorms developing today into this evening. Forecast soundings show fairly good CAPE and DCAPE values around 800 J/kg, indicating some potential for a few stronger storms with gusty winds today. A few storms could also produce isolated pockets of heavy rainfall, but widespread heavy rainfall or flooding is not expected. While remaining quite warm, highs today will be a touch cooler than the previous few days due to the increased cloud cover and rain chances today. Lows will remain in the mid 60s.&& .SHORT TERM... (Sunday through Monday night) Issued at 338 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 Showers and thunderstorms linger in the forecast Sunday and Monday afternoon. Temperatures will climb into the upper 80s to near 90 for highs and overnight lows only manage the middle to upper 60s. General troughiness at H5 should allow for a somewhat active sea breeze again Sunday afternoon. Ample moisture coupled with weak steering flow could lead to a localized flooding threat if any one shower/storm lingers over an area for too long. We`ll also be on the lookout for outflow boundaries that could interact with other outflow boundaries or the sea breeze to spark additional showers and storms. The best chance for that occurring is generally east of the Chattahoochee and Apalachicola Rivers, with a lesser chance, around 30 percent, for our western areas. Another H5 shortwave is forecast to mosey north of our area during the day Monday and could lead to additional showers and storms Monday afternoon, especially along the I-75 corridor. && .SHORT TERM... (Sunday through Monday night) Issued at 338 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 Showers and thunderstorms linger in the forecast Sunday and Monday afternoon. Temperatures will climb into the upper 80s to near 90 for highs and overnight lows only manage the middle to upper 60s. General troughiness at H5 should allow for a somewhat active sea breeze again Sunday afternoon. Ample moisture coupled with weak steering flow could lead to a localized flooding threat if any one shower/storm lingers over an area for too long. We`ll also be on the lookout for outflow boundaries that could interact with other outflow boundaries or the sea breeze to spark additional showers and storms. The best chance for that occurring is generally east of the Chattahoochee and Apalachicola Rivers, with a lesser chance, around 30 percent, for our western areas. Another H5 shortwave is forecast to mosey north of our area during the day Monday and could lead to additional showers and storms Monday afternoon, especially along the I-75 corridor. && .LONG TERM... (Tuesday through Friday) Issued at 338 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 To quote Glenn Frey: The heat is on. That about sums up the long term forecast for the rest of the work week. In fact, record highs could be challenged around the region as a ridge of high pressure takes over across the Gulf of Mexico and into the Southeast. Not much relief is expected at night with lows only falling into the upper 60s to lower 70s around much of the region. The good news? A cold front is forecast to approach the region late in the period into next weekend and should push temperatures back to near normal, maybe even below normal, by Mother`s Day weekend. All of this is heat is due to a developing H5 ridge over the Gulf of Mexico nudging north into the Southeast. Meanwhile, an H5 trough diving out of Canada Wednesday into Thursday could help keep the H5 ridge a little south than forecast. In other words, there remains some uncertainty as to just how warm we get across the region during the period. While the lower 90s are expected away from the immediate coast, there is a low chance, less than 10 percent, of a few locations reaching into the middle 90s each afternoon. Overnight lows will be well above normal each night with upper 60s to lower 70s. In fact, sites along the immediate coast may not dip much below the mid 70s Tuesday night and beyond. Fortunately, the H5 trough mentioned above will slowly push a cold front into the region sometime Friday or Saturday. This should put a damper on the summer-like heat by Mother`s Day weekend and push temperatures closer to normal, or mid 80s for highs and near 60 for lows. && .AVIATION... (12Z TAFS) Issued at 654 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 Rain showers pushing across GA this morning will push eastward and out of the area. A bit of a lull is expected for a few hours this morning before showers and thunderstorms develop across the area this afternoon and linger into the evening hours. A mix of fog/low stratus will improve to VFR around mid to late morning. Another round of fog and/or low stratus is expected overnight, particularly in areas that get rainfall today. && .MARINE... Issued at 1011 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 Offshore buoys were reporting east to SE winds up to 10 kts with less than 2-ft seas and a dominant period of 6-7 seconds this morning. From CWF Synopsis...Tranquil boating conditions continue through the weekend and into next week as high pressure hangs out in the western Atlantic. Light winds, generally out of the south- southeast, are expected with seas around 2 feet through the weekend. The afternoon seabreeze brings a direct onshore component along the immediate coastal waters. There is a slight chance of showers and storms today and again Sunday mainly just inland along the seabreeze. && .FIRE WEATHER... Issued at 338 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 Scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected across the area today with gusty erratic winds possible in and around storms. Generally onshore flow is expected for the next several days except at times overnight when a land breeze may set up. Expect a sea breeze to develop and move inland each afternoon. Mixing heights will increase Monday, leading to the potential for high dispersions in the afternoon. && .HYDROLOGY... Issued at 338 AM EDT Sat May 4 2024 Ample moisture coupled with the potential for slow-moving showers and storms this afternoon could lead to a localized flooding threat later today. The latest HREF is showing a 40 to 60 percent chance of rainfall in excess of 3" across our eastern timezone counties, or east of the Chattahoochee/Apalachicola Rivers, over the next 48 hours. If these higher rainfall totals come to fruition, localized street flooding is possible, especially if it falls in the more urban areas. Drier weather takes over next week. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not requested. However, spotters are always encouraged to safely report significant weather conditions when they occur by calling the office or tweeting us @NWSTallahassee. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Tallahassee 87 66 89 68 / 50 40 30 10 Panama City 82 68 85 69 / 10 0 10 0 Dothan 87 66 88 66 / 40 40 30 0 Albany 87 65 88 67 / 70 70 40 10 Valdosta 85 65 89 67 / 60 60 50 10 Cross City 88 65 88 66 / 50 20 40 10 Apalachicola 80 70 81 70 / 10 0 0 0 && .TAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FL...High Rip Current Risk through late Sunday night for FLZ108-112- 114-115. GA...None. AL...None. GM...None. && $$ update...IG3 NEAR TERM...Merrifield SHORT TERM...Reese LONG TERM....Reese AVIATION...Merrifield MARINE...Reese/IG3 FIRE WEATHER...Merrifield HYDROLOGY...Reese