Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Sterling, VA

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000 FXUS61 KLWX 220054 AFDLWX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Baltimore MD/Washington DC 854 PM EDT Sun Apr 21 2024 .SYNOPSIS... Low pressure will pass to our south today. High pressure will build in for Monday and Tuesday. A cold front will move through Wednesday, with high pressure building in again for the end of the week. && .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM MONDAY MORNING/...
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High clouds are in the process of moving out of the forecast area this evening, as low pressure at the surface progresses offshore. Winds remain out of the northwest at around 5-10 mph. Skies should totally clear out overnight, and the pressure gradient should slowly weaken. Eventually, many locations are expected to decouple, especially to the west of the Blue Ridge. Locations along and east of I-95 stand the greatest chance of seeing winds stay up through the night. With the clearing skies, and winds eventually expected to go light or calm, that will set the stage for radiational cooling within what is already a chilly airmass by late April standards (00z IAD sounding had an 850 hPa temperature of -1C). Most locations should drop back into the 30s by morning, with lower 40s in downtown DC and Baltimore. Freeze Warnings have been issued for tonight along and west of the Blue Ridge, while Frost Advisories are in effect to the east of the Blue Ridge/north and west of I-95.
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&& .SHORT TERM /6 AM MONDAY MORNING THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT/... Upper troughing will push off to our east tomorrow, with subsidence in its wake leading to sunny skies across the area. Winds will remain light out of the northwest, and temperatures will rebound nicely after a cold start. High temperatures will generally be in the 60s. High pressure will become centered overhead tomorrow night. Clear skies and calm winds in the vicinity of the high will lead to ideal conditions for radiational cooling tomorrow night. Dewpoints will be a bit higher than today, which will limit how cold it can get, but most locations should still drop back into the 30s. Additional Frost Advisories may eventually be needed for tomorrow night. Upper troughing will dig into the Great Lakes on Tuesday, while low pressure at the surface tracks across southern Canada. A trailing cold front will extend southwestward across the Ohio Valley. The daylight hours on Tuesday look to remain dry, but high clouds will be on the increase later in the afternoon. High temperatures will be seasonable Tuesday, with most locations reaching into the upper 60s and lower 70s. A few showers may impact the area Tuesday night, with the mountains experiencing the greatest chance for rain. && .LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... An area of low pressure and an associated cold front moves into the area Wednesday morning. Guidance has continued to trend drier, with only the upslope of the Allegheny Front seeing decent PoPs as downsloping flow beyond the mountains suppresses shower activity. Outside of the upslope areas, some showers could develop along extreme northern MD, but otherwise shower activity is looking less likely. As another area of high pressure moves in behind the system, a tight pressure gradient between the low pressure and the high pressure on the back end of the system likely results in gusty winds through Wednesday night. Northwest gusts up to around 25-30 kt, are expected for much of the Wednesday afternoon, and up to around 35 kt along the higher ridges. Dry conditions return Thursday into Friday with high pressure. The next chance for precipitation approaches Friday night into Saturday as a warm front associated with a surface low over the Midwest moves in from the southwest. Showers and afternoon thunderstorms are possible Saturday as the warm front moves through the area. Temperatures on Wednesday will depend on the timing of the cold frontal passage as temps drop behind it, but could see above normal temps east of the Blue Ridge before the front in the afternoon. Thursday and Friday will be cooler, but gradually warming into the weekend, with above normal temperatures expected Saturday. && .AVIATION /01Z MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/...
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VFR conditions are expected through Tuesday. Winds are currently light out of the northwest, and will remain northwesterly through the day tomorrow. Winds will turn southerly on Tuesday, and may gust to around 15-25 knots during the afternoon hours. As a cold front moves into the area Wednesday, some showers could bring sub-VFR conditions to the terminals, but guidance has continued to trend drier east of the Alleghenies. MRB, BWI and MTN seem the most likely to receive rain of the terminals, with the greatest chance during the morning and moving out by evening. Winds turn out of the NW on Wednesday with gusts 20-25 kt, possibly closer to 30 kt for MRB. Winds diminish and turn out of the north with VFR conditions expected.
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&& .MARINE...
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Sub-SCA northerly winds are ongoing over the waters. Winds will pick up out of the north over the next couple hours, with SCA conditions expected overnight. Sub-SCA level northwesterly winds are expected on Monday. Winds will turn southerly on Tuesday, and may reach SCA level at times. As a cold front crosses the waters, gusty northwesterly winds likely exceed SCA criteria Wednesday through Wednesday night. Winds diminish and turn out of the north on Thursday.
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&& .TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING... Anomalies remain low over the waters today. No flooding is anticipated over the next few days, but a few of the more sensitive locations may reach Action stage. && .LWX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
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DC...None. MD...Freeze Warning from 2 AM to 8 AM EDT Monday for MDZ003. Frost Advisory from 2 AM to 8 AM EDT Monday for MDZ004>006-008- 503-505-507-508. VA...Freeze Warning from 2 AM to 8 AM EDT Monday for VAZ025>031-507- 508. Frost Advisory from 2 AM to 8 AM EDT Monday for VAZ038>040-050- 051-501-502-505-506-526. WV...Freeze Warning from 2 AM to 8 AM EDT Monday for WVZ050>053-055. MARINE...Small Craft Advisory until 6 AM EDT Monday for ANZ530>532-539- 540. Small Craft Advisory until 10 AM EDT Monday for ANZ533-534-537- 541-543.
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&& $$ SYNOPSIS...KJP NEAR TERM...KJP SHORT TERM...KJP LONG TERM...CAS AVIATION...KJP/CAS MARINE...KJP/CAS TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING...KJP

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