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Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Raleigh/Durham, NC
Issued by NWS Raleigh/Durham, NC
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089 FXUS62 KRAH 080429 AFDRAH Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Raleigh NC 1230 AM EDT Mon Jul 8 2024 .SYNOPSIS... A weak frontal zone extending from Chesapeake Bay through the Piedmont of the Carolinas will weaken further today before dissipating tonight. Mid and upper level high pressure will build across the area through mid week, before another cold front approaches Wednesday night. This front will then stall out and hold over the western and central Carolinas through Friday. && .NEAR TERM /OVERNIGHT/... As of 928 PM Sunday... The convection has mostly ended across central NC with some lingering rain patches attm, as the sfc front has slipped south and now extends from approx the CLT region ENE to KGSB and then north to the ORF area. Cooler sfc air behind the front is evident in latest sfc obs with readings in the lower 70s and even some upper 60s temps currently across our northeast Piedmont and northern Coastal Plain zones, with mid-upr 70s across much of the rest of central NC except some lingering 80s readings near the SC border. Will make a few tweaks to forecast temps overnight to account for current trends. Otherwise, the rain should gradually taper off after 06Z tonight as both instability and larger-scale forcing wanes. Until then, in additions to some lingering patchy rain, we can`t completely rule out a few widely sct tstms across our southern-most zones where the front hasn`t yet cleared the area. And it`s also worth noting that several MCVs across the Carolinas and Southeast states...as noted in current water vapor imagery, including one notably just west of the CLT area, appear to be drifting slowly to the southeast...and thus should have limited impact on our weather overnight as they should stay south of our area. Finally, the latest HRRR suggests some stratus will continue to develop and expand overnight across much of the Piedmont region, perhaps extending all the way toward I-95... this stratus formation occurring over areas that received the heavier rain earlier today. && .SHORT TERM /6 AM MONDAY MORNING THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT/... As of 250 PM Sunday... * Continued shower/thunderstorm chances, albeit it with lower areal coverage * Brief periods of heavy rain likely the primary threat with any storms that develop We should have a very similar synoptic setup across the area tomorrow with PW`s still running around 2 to 2.2". The presence of a stalled surface boundary may be lacking though and with only a lee trough and sea breeze to contend with, the overall triggering mechanisms for convection may ultimately be the limiting factor. Storms are once again favored across the western Piedmont along with the Sandhills/southern Coastal Plain, with lesser chances elsewhere. Storms are likely to be outflow dominant and pulse-type in nature given very weak steering flow around 15kts or less. While wet microbursts would be a possibility with any storms that approach severe limits, locally heavy rainfall from slow moving/training storms would likely be the primary threat tomorrow. However given relatively limited areal coverage, we shouldn`t need any flood watches. PoPs in the 20-40 percent range area-wide are the general consensus from the NBM, HREF, and other global models and this seems reasonable at this point. Temps will be on par with today`s values with highs in the upper 80s/lower 90s with lows falling into the lower 70s. && .LONG TERM /TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... As of 250 PM Sunday... * Typical summer pattern through the weekend * Some storms possible Tuesday/Wednesday, becoming more numerous late in the week Precip chances look to decrease on Tuesday as an offshore upper low off the NC coast dives southwestward toward Florida. In its wake, mid level heights appear to increase by a few meters and this may be enough to further inhibit storm development across the area. While similar PW`s will be in place area-wide, very limited forcing and instability outside of an area near a lee trough across the western Piedmont should keep storms isolated/widely scattered in nature. Meanwhile, the remnant circulation and moisture associated with T.C. Beryl will be drawn inland and absorbed into a longwave trough approaching the western Great Lakes later this week. This will spawn a relatively deep surface cyclone that will track northward across the Great Lakes into southern Ontario. An attendant surface boundary will make an eastward run at the mountains, but likely stall/wash out before it makes it across. However the remnant boundary and/or lee troughing will likely result in an area of enhanced surface convergence which will be stall out and be slow to exit the area. Nearly all global models suggest a plume of increased PW`s will be drawn inland from off the SE coast on Wednesday, interacting with and serving as a necessary ingredient for increased shower and thunderstorm coverage to close out the week. There is a general consensus among the ensembles that Thursday and Friday could be particularly active as a weak surface low develops along the stalled surface boundary to our south and tracks through central NC. Looking at the 100 member grand ensemble of the Canadian, GFS, and EC ensemble forecast systems, nearly 80 percent suggest precip across the area on Thursday and nearly 90 percent on Friday, which is an unusually high amount of agreement for this time of year at this lead time. Of course exactly how much rain will fall, and exactly where the surface boundary and low track set up, is still TBD but the trend of increasing late-week PoPs will continue. Precip chances should remain elevated (although slightly lower as compared to Thursday/Friday), as we get into the weekend. Temperatures this week should be within a few degrees of normal. Through mid week with mid level ridging sneaking in from the east, temps should make a solid run into the mid 90s area-wide and it is on these days (Tuesday and Wednesday) where heat indices could make a return to dangerously high values. However increased cloud cover and precip chances will knock readings back into the mid/upper 80s Thursday, especially Friday, and possibly into Saturday as well before returning to normal by Sunday. Lows throughout the period generally upper 60s to mid 70s. && .AVIATION /06Z MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/... As of 1230 AM Monday... Confidence is high in widespread sub-VFR stratus (mostly IFR/LIFR) and areas of mostly MVFR fog persisting across much of central NC until mid morning, particularly affecting INT/GSO/RDU, with slightly lower confidence at RWI/FAY. Patchy rain will dwindle but linger over the far SW edges of the forecast area through daybreak, however much of the area will stay dry through mid morning. IFR clouds will be slow to improve, likely rising to MVFR between 14z and 16z (slowest in the W Piedmont) and to VFR by 18z. FAY is likely to see MVFR/IFR cigs lasting a shorter time, 10z-14z, with 08z-14z at RWI. Scattered showers and storms are expected today, through the central sections (RDU) late morning/early afternoon then over the NW and SE areas (INT/GSO and FAY) mid afternoon through early evening, with storms likely to develop over the higher terrain and drift into the Triad, and along an inland-moving sea breeze toward FAY. Overall coverage is expected to be lower than over the last two days, and showers and storms should start to decrease and diminish by mid to late evening. Periods of sub-VFR cigs/vsbys and gusty/erratic winds are possible in and near any storms today. Outside of any storms today/tonight, surface winds will be light and variable, mainly from the S (SE through SW). Looking beyond 06z Tue, there is a chance for sub-VFR cigs/vsbys early Tue morning, mainly across the S, but should be less coverage than this morning. A general pattern of scattered to numerous showers and storms primarily each afternoon through evening will continue through Fri, with the highest chances late Wed night through Fri, and at least some chance of early-morning sub-VFR clouds/fog each day. -GIH && .CLIMATE... Record High Minimum Temperatures: July 7: KGSO: 73/2019 KRDU: 77/1900 KFAY: 78/2017 July 8: KGSO: 76/2010 KRDU: 78/1986 KFAY: 79/2012 July 9: KGSO: 76/1987 KRDU: 74/2014 && .RAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... None. && $$ SYNOPSIS...Hartfield NEAR TERM...np SHORT TERM...DL LONG TERM...DL AVIATION...Hartfield CLIMATE...RAH