788  
FXUS61 KPHI 080128  
AFDPHI  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ  
828 PM EST SAT NOV 7 2009  
   
SYNOPSIS  
 
A WEAK TROUGH WILL CROSS THE AREA OVERNIGHT. OTHERWISE, HIGH  
PRESSURE OFF THE NORTHERN MID ATLANTIC COAST WILL BE THE MAIN  
WEATHER INFLUENCE INTO MONDAY. A COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH THE AREA  
MONDAY NIGHT AND MOVE INTO THE AREA ON TUESDAY. HIGH PRESSURE  
FOLLOW FOR THE MID TO LATE WORK WEEK.  
 
 
   
NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM SUNDAY MORNING/  
 
SKIES ARE CLEAR ACROSS OUR CWA AND IN SPITE OF STRONGER WINDS  
ALOFT, THEY HAVE NEARLY DECOUPLED. WE ARE SEEING SOME SC AND AC  
DEVELOP ACROSS UPSTATE AND WESTERN NY, BUT THE CURRENT FORECAST  
WINDS AND LATEST MODEL GUIDANCE SHOWING NVA AFTER ABT 03Z SHOULD  
HELP FIGHT THE CLOUDS TRYING TO ENTER OUR CWA. SO WHILE CONFIDENCE  
IS WEAKER ALONG OUR BORDERS WITH BGM AND OKX, WE HAVE TRENDED  
TEMPERATURES, CLOUDS AND WIND DOWNWARD AS PER CURRENT OBS AND THE  
SLIGHTLY MORE OPTIMISTIC 18Z MODEL DATA.  
 
THEREFORE, WE ARE STILL EXPECTING A DRY AND MILDER NIGHT THAN  
LAST NIGHT UNDER, PERHAPS, SOME DEVELOPING CLOUDS /NOT A GREAT  
DEAL, AND PERHAPS A BIT MORE WAY NORTH/.  
 
 
   
SHORT TERM /6 AM SUNDAY MORNING THROUGH TUESDAY/  
 
AFTER THE SHORT WAVE MOVES THROUGH, THE MID LEVEL RIDGE WILL BUILD  
INTO MONDAY MORNING. SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE WILL ANCHOR OFF THE  
NORTHERN MID ATLANTIC SEABOARD IN RESPONSE. THERE MAY BE A BIT OF  
WARM AIR ADVECTION CLOUDINESS ALOFT FROM TIME TO TIME, BUT EXPECT A  
FAIR AMOUNT OF SUNSHINE SUNDAY AND MONDAY. ALSO, SUNDAY NIGHT COULD  
BE A FAIR RADIATING NIGHT /THERE CERTAINLY IS A CHOICE REGARDING  
MINS BETWEEN THE COOLER MAV AND THE WARMER MET/. THAT SAID, THE  
GENERAL TENOR IS FOR DRY AND MILDER CONDITIONS THAT MAY EVENTUALLY  
HAVE US REFERRING TO INDIAN SUMMER.  
 
A COLD FRONT AND ASSOCIATED MID LEVEL TROUGH WILL ADVANCE MONDAY  
NIGHT INTO TUESDAY ONCE THE MID LEVEL RIDGE AXIS SHIFTS EAST, AND  
FOR NOW WE'VE GONE WITH THE TIMING OF THE 00Z ECMWF OVER THE  
ATYPICALLY QUICKER 12Z NAM OR THE SLOWER 12Z GFS. ALL THREE OF THESE  
MODELS PUSH THE MID LEVEL TROUGH FAR ENOUGH SOUTH TO KEEP MOISTURE  
FROM IDA OUT OF OUR AREA, AND THE FRONT WOULD NOT HAVE A LOT OF  
MOISTURE TO WORK WITH IF THAT ENDS UP BEING CORRECT.  
 
ON THE OTHER HAND, THERE IS SOME FRONTOGENESIS NEAR THE SURFACE AND  
Q-VECTOR CONVERGENCE ALOFT WITH THIS FEATURE. THERE ALSO MAY BE AN  
UPPER LEVEL JET PROVIDING SUPPORT, AND WE WON'T YET DISMISS THE  
POSSIBILITY THAT THE MODELS KEEP THE IDA MOISTURE TOO FAR SOUTH, SO  
WE'LL GO A BIT HIGHER WITH POPS ON TUESDAY THAN HPC IS GOING. WITH  
THE ADVANCING FRONT, WE'LL LEAN TOWARD THE MILDER GUIDANCE ON MONDAY  
NIGHT ALTHOUGH WE WON'T OVERDO IT AS THE WINDS ABOVE THE SURFACE ARE  
NOT PROGGED TO BE THAT STRONG. CONTINUITY WAS FOLLOWED FOR TUESDAY  
AS IT SEEMS CONSISTENT WITH OUR TIMING OF THE FRONT.  
 
 
   
LONG TERM /TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY/  
 
LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE ACROSS EASTERN CANADA ON TUESDAY, STAYING  
WELL TO OUR NORTH, BUT THE ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT WILL CROSS THE  
REGION ON TUESDAY NIGHT. THIS WILL THEN GIVE WAY TO A VERY STRONG  
AND LARGE AREA OF HIGH PRESSURE. THIS HIGH LOOKS TO PUSH EASTWARD  
THROUGH THE WEEK KEEPING US HIGH AND DRY THROUGH NEXT WEEKEND.  
 
THE KINK IN THIS FORECAST IS THE POSSIBILITY OF ANY MOISTURE  
ASSOCIATED WITH IDA IN THE GULF MAKING ITS WAY UP NORTH. THE GFS  
TAKES THE REMNANT SYSTEM AND THEN MOVES IT UP THROUGH THE CAROLINAS  
AND OFF THE MIDDLE ATLANTIC COAST. THIS SCENARIO WOULD BRING SOME  
DECENT RAIN TOT HE AREA THROUGH WEDNESDAY AND INTO EARLY THURSDAY.  
THE ECMWF HAS A DRIER SOLUTION IN WHICH THE HIGH IS STRONG ENOUGH TO  
SUPPRESS THE MOISTURE AND KEEP IT TO OUR SOUTH. THE CANADIAN MODEL  
HAS SHIFTED BACK TO LOOK MORE LIKE THE ECMWF WITH DRIER CONDITIONS.  
WITH THE UNCERTAINTY IN THE MODELS IT WAS THOUGHT THAT THE HIGH WILL  
DOMINATE AND KEEP THE REMNANT LOW FROM PUSHING NORTHWARD THUS  
KEEPING THE MOISTURE IN THE SOUTHEASTERN STATES.  
 
THEREFORE, WE HAVE FOLLOWED HPC GUIDANCE FOR THE EXTENDED AND HAVE  
KEPT THE MAJORITY OF THE FORECAST DRY.  
 
 
   
AVIATION /02Z SUNDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/  
 
THE FOLLOWING DISCUSSION IS FOR KPHL, KPNE, KTTN, KABE, KRDG, KILG,  
KMIV, KACY AND SURROUNDING AREAS.  
 
A WEAKENING FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL SLIDE ACROSS OUR AREA LATE  
TONIGHT AND EARLY SUNDAY MORNING. WINDS SHOULD BECOME RELATIVELY  
LIGHT OVERNIGHT AT MOST SITES AND THEN BECOME NORTHWEST AROUND 10  
KNOTS OR LESS ON SUNDAY BEFORE PERHAPS SHIFTING BACK TO THE  
SOUTHWEST TOWARD EVENING. THE FLOW IS FORECAST TO LIGHTER SUNDAY  
AND WITH MILDER AIR ARRIVING, THE SURFACE WINDS MAY TURN SOUTH OR  
EVEN SOUTHEAST ESPECIALLY AT KILG AND KACY DUE TO A POSSIBLE  
INFLUENCE FROM NEARBY WATER.  
 
OTHERWISE, SOME MID TO HIGH LEVEL CLOUDS STREAMING BY FROM TIME TO  
TIME THROUGH SUNDAY. ANY STRATOCUMULUS THAT FORMS TO OUR NORTHWEST  
WITH THE WEAKENING FRONT LATER TONIGHT SHOULD STAY NORTH OF OUR  
TERMINALS. IT APPEARS THE FOG POTENTIAL LATE TONIGHT AND EARLY  
SUNDAY MORNING IS RATHER LOW. WHILE A TOUCH OF RIVER FOG IS POSSIBLE  
AT KRDG, CONFIDENCE IS NOT HIGH IT ACTUALLY MAKES IT ONTO THE  
AIRFIELD /IF IT DOES INDEED DEVELOP/, THEREFORE IT WAS LEFT OUT AT  
THIS TIME. OVERALL, VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH THE PERIOD.  
 
OUTLOOK...  
HIGH PRESSURE IS FORECAST TO MEANDER NEARBY SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH  
MONDAY NIGHT. A COLD FRONT IS THEN FORECAST TO MOVE THROUGH LATE  
TUESDAY. THIS SHOULD BRING SOME SHOWERS TO THE AREA ALONG WITH SOME  
LOWERED CEILINGS, HOWEVER THERE IS UNCERTAINTY ON HOW MUCH MOISTURE  
GETS PULLED NORTHWARD AHEAD OF THIS FRONT. A POSSIBLE GUSTY  
NORTHWESTERLY WIND MAY OCCUR TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY PRIOR TO  
HIGH PRESSURE GETTING CLOSER INTO THURSDAY.  
 
 
   
MARINE  
 
HIGH PRESSURE WILL MEANDER NEAR THE AREA THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT,  
BRING A MORE SOUTHERLY FLOW TO OUR WATERS. ON THE BACKSIDE OF THE  
SURFACE HIGH, THE WINDS ABOVE THE SURFACE ARE FORECAST TO  
STRENGTHEN SOME RELATED TO A LOW-LEVEL JET.  
 
AS A RESULT OF THIS JET AND SOME VERTICAL MIXING, SEAS HAVE RISEN  
TO 5 FT AT BUOY 44009 THIS EVENING WITH WINDS GUSTING UP NEAR 25  
KNOTS. WE HAVE THEREFORE RAISED A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR THE  
OCEAN FRONT IN EFFECT THROUGH 6AM SUNDAY MORNING.  
 
THERE WILL BE A WEAKENING FRONTAL BOUNDARY MOVING THROUGH SUNDAY,  
WHICH MAY ALLOW THE WINDS TO SHIFT FOR A TIME TO THE WEST. THE  
WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO DISSIPATE ON SUNDAY AS THE LOW-LEVEL WIND  
FIELD WEAKENS AND HIGH PRESSURE DOMINATES.  
 
THE NEXT FEATURE OF INTEREST WILL BE A COLD FRONT THAT IS FORECAST  
TO CROSS THE AREA MAINLY TUESDAY NIGHT. THE PRESSURE GRADIENT WILL  
TIGHTEN UP MOSTLY IN ITS WAKE AS A STRONG SURFACE HIGH BEGINS TO  
SLIDE EASTWARD TO THE OHIO VALLEY AND A POSSIBLE STORM IS TO OUR  
EAST. THIS COUPLED WITH CAA WILL COMBINE FOR MORE EFFICIENT VERTICAL  
MIXING AND AN INCREASED CHC OF WINDS/SEAS REACHING ADVISORY  
CRITERIA. THERE IS SOME UNCERTAINTY THOUGH ON THE STRENGTH OF THIS  
SYSTEM AS ENERGY FROM TROPICAL CYCLONE IDA, CURRENTLY IN THE  
NORTHWESTERN CARIBBEAN/, MAY OR MAY NOT GET INVOLVED OR IT COULD  
JUST GET STUCK IN THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES. BASED ON THE  
UNCERTAINTY, WE DID NOT GO WITH THE 12Z WAVEWATCH GUIDANCE /GFS  
DRIVEN/ TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT AS IT LOOKS OVERDONE  
DUE TO A STRENGTHENING SURFACE LOW TO OUR EAST AND NORTHEAST. THE  
AFOREMENTIONED SURFACE HIGH THEN BUILDS IN FOR THURSDAY WITH A  
RELAXING PRESSURE GRADIENT.  
 
 
   
PHI WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES  
 
PA...NONE.  
NJ...NONE.  
DE...NONE.  
MD...NONE.  
MARINE...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM EST SUNDAY FOR ANZ450>455.  
 
 
 
 
SYNOPSIS...DELISI/GIGI  
NEAR TERM...DELISI  
SHORT TERM...DELISI  
LONG TERM...MEOLA  
AVIATION...GORSE/MEOLA  
MARINE...GORSE/MEOLA  
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