Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Detroit/Pontiac, MI
Issued by NWS Detroit/Pontiac, MI
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552 FXUS63 KDTX 131633 AFDDTX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Detroit/Pontiac MI 1233 PM EDT Mon Oct 13 2025 .KEY MESSAGES... - Dry weather to start the week with temperatures 5 to 10 degrees above normal. - A dry cold front moves through the area Tuesday leading to cooler temperatures Wednesday. - There is also an increasing probability of rain Wednesday morning, currently at about 30 percent. - Dry weather and normal mid October temperatures resume during the late week. && .AVIATION... Early morning low level moisture is resulting in an expanding diurnal cu field early this afternoon, more concentrated east of the terminals. Some degree of diurnal cu will persist through the afternoon. Growth of the daytime boundary layer should keep these clouds VFR based this afternoon. The region of showers ongoing across Lake Michigan is associated with a weak cold front. This frontal system will undergo considerable weakening as it advances across Se Mi tonight. This will ensure a dry fropa with limited cloud cover. The low level flow will turn more northerly overnight, limiting the degree of inland advancement of the marine layer. This will inhibit a more widespread and prolonged early morning fog event. With current surface dewpoints in the 50s and the potential for intervals of clear skies amidst a light wind field overnightwill support some radiational fog development. For DTW/D21 Convection...No thunderstorms through the taf period. DTW THRESHOLD PROBABILITIES... * Low for visibilities aob 1/2 sm or ceilings aob 200 ft early Tuesday morning. && .PREV DISCUSSION... Issued at 350 AM EDT Mon Oct 13 2025 DISCUSSION... Late night/early morning observations show mild air entrenched across the central Great Lakes that is heavily augmented by moisture from Lake Huron, Erie, and also Lake Ontario given the easterly wind trajectories. This means another round of fog and stratus across Lower Mi with varying coverage depending on surface wind resilience. Cirrus inbound from the Midwest frontal zone does little to disrupt the otherwise standard mid October daytime heating influence on fog and stratus trends during the morning. The boundary layer moisture then mixes into a cumulus field just as clouds from the Midwest cold front approach from western Lower Mi this afternoon. Upstream observations at press time support model initializations of a broken band of rain showers within the leading theta-e ridge. Model agreement also remains overwhelming on dissipation of the showers as the front moves into Lower Mi well to the south and east of mid level short wave and upper jet support in Canada. The 500 mb ridge is actually shown to build over the central Great Lakes today until getting nudged eastward which allows the front to finish moving through SE Mi Tuesday morning. Until then, temperatures continue a run of 5 to 10 degrees above normal today and Tuesday before low level cold advection gains traction Tuesday night. Wednesday is set to be the coolest day of the week as Canadian high pressure builds into Lower Mi dropping high temperatures back into the upper 50s to lower 60s. Clouds will also be a factor along with increasing probability for rain as elevated sections of the Tuesday front linger overhead. The surface front is well south toward the Ohio valley while the 850-700 mb theta-e gradient sets up across Lower Mi late Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. Consensus of deterministic models is trending upward on rain probability during this time as the upper jet and a low amplitude 500 mb wave activate the mid level frontal zone until driving the pattern south of the IN/OH border by afternoon. The larger scale mid and upper level flow amplifies considerably during late week resulting in a ridge centered on the Midwest by Thursday. This supports dry weather and a broad area of surface high pressure across the central Great Lakes. Extended range/global model solutions are then in general agreement on slow eastward progression of the ridge across Lower Mi through Friday. Solutions are mixed on the eastward extent of precipitation by then as a large low pressure and frontal system organize from central Canada down through the Plains heading into next weekend. MARINE... Influence of ridging gradually wanes today as winds turn more southeasterly. Low pressure lifting out over the Hudson Bay allows the local gradient to slacken resulting in winds falling below 15kts by this afternoon and persisting through most of tonight. Associated cold front eventually pivots across the central Great Lakes ushering in moderate northwesterly flow Tuesday with peak gusts reaching between 20-30kts- strongest over the open water zones of Lake Huron. Small craft advisories will likely be needed around the Thumb due to the favorable wind direction bringing higher wave action into the nearshore waters. A few light showers are also possible along this front late Tuesday however the bulk of the region remains dry. High pressure sinking out of the Canadian Prairie then builds across the region midweek. && .DTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MI...None. Lake Huron...None. Lake St Clair...None. Michigan waters of Lake Erie...None. && $$ AVIATION.....SC DISCUSSION...BT MARINE.......KDK You can obtain your latest National Weather Service forecasts online at www.weather.gov/detroit.