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Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Chicago, IL
Issued by NWS Chicago, IL
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072 FXUS63 KLOT 152353 AFDLOT Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Chicago/Romeoville, IL 653 PM CDT Thu Aug 15 2024 .KEY MESSAGES... - Several rounds of thunderstorms are possible from tonight into Friday. A few storms may be severe, and not all areas will see thunderstorms. - Isolated showers and thunderstorms possible over the weekend, especially on Saturday. - Temperatures early next week will be below average with highs in the 70s to around 80. && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 230 PM CDT Thu Aug 15 2024 Through Friday Night: Regional water vapor and radar imagery depicts an elongated area of low pressure centered over the Midwest with several embedded shortwaves pinwheeling around the perimeter of the circulation. The first shortwave is currently moving through the Lower Great Lakes, and continues to support scattered showers across northern Illinois and northwestern Indiana. Mostly cloudy skies have prevented highs from climbing much above the low to mid 70s, altogether making for a cool, and somewhat wet, day. With the increasingly tight pressure gradient being forced by the approaching surface component of the broad upper-level low in the northern Plains, south to southeast winds remain breezy and continue to build up waves on Lake Michigan. A Beach Hazards Statement remains in effect from Chicago to Waukegan (and points northward) though this evening. The next upper-level shortwave and associated upper-level jet speed max is easily identifiable in radar and satellite imagery near eastern Nebraska, and will approach our area after dark. Although forecast confidence in exactly how and were thunderstorms develop remains on the lower side of the spectrum, an ensemble of convective allowing models favors at least scattered thunderstorms moving through the general area from about midnight to daybreak along the nose of the aforementioned jet speed max. While thunderstorms will likely be rooted above the near-surface layer, cloud-layer shear >50 kt should support semi-organized clusters capable of producing frequent lightning, heavy downpours, locally gusty winds, and small non-damaging hail. One or two storms may briefly acquire severe caliber hail or winds, though such a threat should be localized. The SPC Level 2/5 threat level is probably a category too high, but should cover the threat well. All remaining showers and storm should scoot east and away from our area after daybreak allowing for clouds to scatter by mid-afternoon. Boundary layer warming with surface temperatures climbing into the mid 80s and lingering low-level moisture should allow for a pool of 1000+ J/kg of MLCAPE to develop by mid-afternoon ahead of the third, and final, shortwave (currently meandering across North Dakota). With a stout pop of southwesterly (and veering) low-level winds ahead of the shortwave, forecast kinematic profiles within the instability axis tomorrow afternoon do raise eyebrows and appear supportive of low-topped supercell structures, given some 25-30kt of shear and 150-200 J/kg of SRH in the lowest 3 km (assuming a southeasterly storm motion). As a result, thunderstorms tomorrow afternoon and evening may carry a threat for localized severe weather in the form of brief tornadoes, damaging hail, and damaging winds. Now, a clear failure mode for thunderstorms (both coverage and intensity) tomorrow afternoon and evening will be the quality of low- level moisture, as the normally trustworthy HRRR and RAP depict aggressive downward mixing of mixed-layer dew points in response to breezy west winds. Forecast soundings taken from more moist CAMs also depict a notable dry pocket within the mixed layer, which would lead to similar, correspondingly low, values of MLCAPE. With that said, even just 500 J/kg of MLCAPE may be enough for sustained convective attempts given the deep-layer shear won`t be overly strong (to enhance the entrainment of dry air and "shear apart" initial updrafts). However, the signal for less-than-stellar quality moisture in the mixed layer does suggest coverage of thunderstorms may be isolated to scattered at best, and primarily confined to areas along and north of I-88 in closer proximity to the core of forcing. For now, the SPC Level 1/5 threat level for tomorrow afternoon and evening appears appropriate, as adjustments (both upward or downward) may be needed as the integrity of mixed-layer moisture becomes more clear. Borchardt Saturday through Thursday: The upper trough responsible for today`s rain can be found spinning over the North Dakota/Manitoba border this afternoon. It will gradually work its way eastward over the next several days traversing the Great Lakes over the weekend. After dragging a cold front across the area Friday night providing a chance for some stronger storms (see short term discussion above), the low level circulation will remain over Lake Michigan during the day on Saturday. The broad forcing for ascent will help pull precip chances into this weekend. Forecast soundings also remain relatively moist on the backside of the system which may make it easier for any subtle forcing mechanisms to stir up some showers. A couple of thunderstorms will be possible during the afternoon as well after heating can destabilize the low levels some. Thermo profiles though remain poor aloft and overall unfavorable for robust convection, so none is anticipated at this time. Coverage looks isolated to widely scattered but may be maximized around the lakeshore nearer to the circulation. Conditions will be seasonably cool over the weekend following Friday`s cold front. Similar highs in the middle and upper 70s are expected both days. Onshore flow will keep temperatures a bit cooler near the lake on Sunday. A rather tight MSLP gradient between the departing low and an impending high to the northwest will bring about breezy conditions over the weekend as well. As a result, building waves may make for dangerous swimming conditions (mainly Sunday into Monday). A few additional showers may go up during the day on Sunday, but with high pressure and drier air encroaching from the west, chances are primarily focused across the eastern half of the CWA. After the trough finally makes it out of the region early next week, a sizable upper ridge will dominate the western CONUS spreading high surface pressure across the Great Lakes region. This is expected to keep precip chances minimal and provide lots of sunshine during the earlier half of the week. Highs will be pretty steady in the middle to upper 70s each day before conditions look to heat up after mid- week as the ridge meanders eastward. Doom && .AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z FRIDAY/... Issued at 616 PM CDT Thu Aug 15 2024 Aviation Forecast Concerns: - MVFR ceilings may improve for a time this evening, though patchy MVFR conditions likely will later tonight especially for KRFD. - Scattered thunderstorm potential roughly 04-08Z window at KRFD and 05-09Z for KORD/KMDW. Somewhat low confidence in coverage over terminals. - Chance of additional scattered thunderstorms Friday evening. Surface low pressure was centered over northwest MN early this evening, with a warm front extending into northern IL. A cold front trailed farther west across IA and eastern KS. Warm/moist advection in the vicinity of the warm frontal zone has maintained extensive cloud cover across the region, though most of the earlier showers have moved east of the area since this afternoon. A few spotty showers may linger this evening, though MVFR cloud cover will likely erode for a time from the southwest across most of the terminals (KRFD may have the toughest time losing the MVFR deck). Surface winds from the SSE should eventually turn more SSW late this evening. We continue to monitor scattered thunderstorm development upstream across eastern IA early this evening, which is expected to eventually increase in coverage and spread east tonight in association with a mid-level disturbance and ahead of the cold front. High-res CAM guidance generally suggests the main window for a few hours of thunder in the terminals to be after 03-04Z for KRFD and after 05Z-06Z for the Chicago metro sites. There is some spread in the degree of coverage between models however, so while confidence in thunder and the general timing is fairly high, confidence in coverage across the terminals is lower. Winds will become more SW to WSW Friday (with gusts 20-25 kt in the afternoon) as the weak cold front moves through the area. Any lingering MVFR ceilings early in the day should mix out and scatter to VFR. Another mid-level disturbance wrapping southeast across the area later in the day may produce some additional scattered thunderstorms for the terminals by early Friday evening. Ratzer && .LOT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IL...Beach Hazards Statement until 10 PM CDT this evening for ILZ006-ILZ103-ILZ104. IN...None. LM...Small Craft Advisory until 10 PM CDT this evening for Winthrop Harbor to Wilmette Harbor IL. && $$ Visit us at weather.gov/chicago