913  
FXUS02 KWBC 221900  
PMDEPD  
 
EXTENDED FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NWS WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER COLLEGE PARK MD  
300 PM EDT MON MAY 22 2023  
 
VALID 12Z THU MAY 25 2023 - 12Z MON MAY 29 2023  
 
...WATCHING COASTAL FRONT/LOW FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF BRINGING  
HEAVY RAIN TO THE EASTERN SEABOARD...  
 
   
..PATTERN OVERVIEW AND GUIDANCE/PREDICTABILITY ASSESSMENT
 
 
MODELS AND ENSEMBLES REMAIN IN DECENT AGREEMENT THAT A WARM UPPER  
RIDGE WILL SHIFT VERY SLOWLY EASTWARD OVER THE PLAINS BEFORE  
NUDGING TOWARD THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY/MIDWEST BY THE WEEKEND.  
MEANWHILE, FAIRLY AMPLIFIED TROUGHS WILL BE ANCHORED ALONG BOTH  
THE WEST AND THE EAST COASTS, RESULTING IN LITTLE OVERALL MOTION  
TO THE ENTIRE SYNOPTIC PATTERN ACROSS THE U.S. THROUGH EARLY NEXT  
WEEK. WITHIN THIS BLOCKY PATTERN, THERE HAVE BEEN CONSIDERABLE  
DIFFERENCES FROM MODEL TO MODEL AND RUN TO RUN OVER THE PAST  
COUPLE OF DAYS. FIRST, THE 00Z/06Z MODEL CYCLE TRENDED TOWARD A  
DIFFERENT EVOLUTION OF ENERGY WITHIN THE EASTERN TROUGH COMPARED  
TO PREVIOUS CYCLES. NAMELY, AT THE START OF THE PERIOD  
THURSDAY-FRIDAY, AN UPPER LOW PRESENT OVER SOUTHEASTERN CANADA NOW  
LOOKS TO SHIFT NORTHEAST AWAY FROM THE FORECAST DOMAIN (THOUGH  
WITH VARIED TIMING--GFS SUITE FASTER). BUT WEAKER ENERGIES WEST OF  
THIS LOW MAY DIVE SOUTH AND ARE THE ONES TO SPIN UP AN UPPER LOW  
IN THE SOUTHEAST BY THE WEEKEND AND LINGERING INTO EARLY NEXT  
WEEK--AT LEAST THIS IS WHAT THE BULK OF MORE RECENT GUIDANCE HAS.  
IN PREVIOUS MODEL CYCLES THE ORIGINAL SOUTHEASTERN CANADA LOW  
SEEMED TO BE THE ONE TO LINGER OVER THE NORTHEAST AND POSSIBLY  
DIRECT MOISTURE THERE. CMC RUNS FROM 00Z AND THE NEWER 12Z RUN  
MAINTAIN THIS ORIGINAL LOW LONGER, BUT THE GFS/ECMWF/UKMET ARE  
SHOWING THIS NEWER TREND. IF THIS UPPER LOW FORMS AND SPINS OVER  
THE SOUTHEAST, THIS COULD PRODUCE A SURFACE LOW NEAR THE SOUTHEAST  
COAST AND DIRECT MOISTURE INTO THE MID-ATLANTIC REGION THAT COULD  
BE LONG-LASTING LATE THIS WEEK INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. THE WPC  
FORECAST TRENDED UP WITH QPF IN THE MID-ATLANTIC REGION THOUGH NOT  
AS HIGH AS SOME MODEL GUIDANCE, GIVEN THIS MODEL TREND IS PRETTY  
NEW. THIS EVOLUTION MAKES IT LESS LIKELY AN ASSOCIATED SURFACE LOW  
WILL HAVE ANY TROPICAL CHARACTERISTICS, AND THIS IS CONSISTENT  
WITH THE CYCLONE PHASE SPACE DIAGRAMS FROM MULTIPLE MODELS SHOWING  
AN ASYMMETRIC COLD-CORE LOW. THE SEPARATE SURFACE LOW THAT THE  
NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER IS TRACKING FOR ANY POSSIBLE  
TROPICAL/SUBTROPICAL DEVELOPMENT LOOKS TO EJECT FROM THE BAHAMAS  
NORTH AND NORTHEAST AWAY FROM THE LOWER 48 BY THURSDAY-FRIDAY.  
WITH THE UPPER LOW POTENTIALLY SETTING UP OVER THE SOUTHEAST, THE  
RIDGE TO ITS WEST MAY BREAK OFF AN UPPER HIGH TO THE LOW'S NORTH  
EARLY NEXT WEEK.  
 
MEANWHILE IN THE WEST, THERE ARE SOME DIFFERENCES LATE WEEK WITH  
THE POTENTIAL FOR A LOW TO CLOSE OFF WITHIN THE TROUGH OR NOT, BUT  
THE AXES OF THE TROUGH ARE GENERALLY SIMILAR. BY THIS WEEKEND AND  
BEYOND THOUGH, MODELS DIVERGE QUITE A BIT AS DIFFERENCES IN ENERGY  
TRACKING OUT FROM THE GULF OF ALASKA LEADING TO HORRENDOUS RUN TO  
RUN CONTINUITY AND PREDICTABILITY. IN GENERAL THOUGH, ADDITIONAL  
TROUGHING IS LIKELY OVER THE WEST, AS SHOWN BY THE MORE AGREEABLE  
ENSEMBLE MEANS, WITH SOME UNSETTLED WEATHER CONTINUING. DID THINK  
THE 00Z ECMWF MAY HAVE BEEN AN OUTLIER BY EARLY NEXT WEEK WITH  
HOLDING A STRONG UPPER LOW OFFSHORE, AND THE 12Z ECMWF HAS TRENDED  
AWAY FROM THAT SOLUTION AND CLOSER TO OTHER MODELS/ENSEMBLES.  
 
GIVEN THESE MODEL DIFFERENCES, THE WPC FORECAST UTILIZED A  
MULTI-MODEL MAINLY DETERMINISTIC BLEND EARLY IN THE PERIOD, BUT  
TRANSITIONED FAIRLY QUICKLY TO AN ENSEMBLE MEAN-HEAVY BLEND BY  
DAYS 6-7 CONSIDERING THE INCREASING MODEL SPREAD AND UNCERTAINTY.  
THE INCOMING 12Z MODEL CYCLE IS GENERALLY FOLLOWING THE 00Z/06Z  
MODEL TRENDS IN THE EAST BY SHOWING A SOUTHEAST UPPER LOW, ADDING  
A BIT OF CONFIDENCE IN THIS PATTERN, BUT PREFER TO SEE ANOTHER  
MODEL CYCLE OR TWO BEFORE FEELING COMFORTABLE WITH TOO MANY  
FORECAST CHANGES.  
 
   
..WEATHER/HAZARDS HIGHLIGHTS
 
 
SHOWERS AND STORMS ARE LIKELY OVER FLORIDA LATE THIS WEEK WITH THE  
POTENTIAL FOR A DEVELOPING SURFACE LOW SYSTEM. RAIN MAY SPREAD UP  
PARTS OF THE EASTERN SEABOARD DEPENDENT ON THE LOW TRACK. THE  
RECENT FORECAST KEEPS HEAVY RAINFALL OFFSHORE OF THE CAROLINAS ON  
THURSDAY WITH SOME POTENTIAL FOR HEAVY AMOUNTS TO REACH THE NORTH  
CAROLINA COAST ON FRIDAY. THEN AMPLE MOISTURE MAY BE DIRECTED INTO  
THE MID-ATLANTIC THIS WEEKEND ON THE EAST/NORTH SIDES OF THE  
POTENTIAL SOUTHEAST UPPER LOW FORMING. AMOUNTS AND PLACEMENT  
REMAIN UNCERTAIN AT THIS POINT THOUGH. BEACH HAZARDS FOR THE  
UPCOMING MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND MAY NOT BE RULED OUT EITHER  
CONSIDERING THIS PATTERN, WITH POTENTIAL FOR GUSTY WINDS AND  
UNSETTLED MARITIME CONDITIONS. SHOWERS AND STORMS MAY FORM FARTHER  
INLAND ACROSS THE TENNESSEE VALLEY AND VICINITY TOO. WITH THE  
UPPER TROUGH/LOW AND THE POTENTIAL CLOUDINESS AND RAIN CHANCES,  
TEMPERATURES ARE LIKELY TO BE COOLER THAN NORMAL ON AVERAGE DURING  
THE PERIOD ACROSS MUCH OF THE EAST.  
 
OTHERWISE, THE AFOREMENTIONED MAIN UPPER RIDGE POSITION SLOW  
TRANSLATION SHOULD SUPPORT SUMMERTIME TEMPERATURES WITH VALUES  
UPWARDS TO 15-20 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL INTO LATE WEEK THAT SHOULD  
PROVE SLOW TO SPREAD SLOWLY EAST WITH TIME ACROSS THE  
NORTH-CENTRAL U.S. TO THE MIDWEST. THE HEAT MAY BE TEMPERED  
LOCALLY BY SCATTERED AND POTENTIALLY STRONG THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY  
BOTH WITH EJECTION OF IMPULSES FROM THE WEST AND WITH INTERACTION  
WITH NORTHERN STREAM SYSTEM/FRONTAL APPROACHES FROM SOUTHERN  
CANADA. LOCALLY HEAVY THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY MAY ALSO FOCUS HEAVY  
LOCAL DOWNPOURS DOWN OVER THE CENTRAL TO SOUTHERN ROCKIES/PLAINS  
AS WELL WITH MOISTURE/INSTABILITY POOLING AHEAD OF A GENERAL  
DRYLINE PATTERN WITH SOUTHERN STREAM IMPULSES. ABOVE TO MUCH ABOVE  
NORMAL OVERNIGHT TEMPERATURES AND A PATTERN FAVORING SCATTERED TO  
WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE ALSO EXPECTED TO LINGER  
ALL WEEK OVER MUCH OF INTERIOR WEST THROUGH THE ROCKIES IN  
MOISTENED FLOW CHANNELED BETWEEN WEST COAST UPPER TROUGHING AND  
THE DOWNSTREAM CENTRAL U.S. UPPER RIDGE. SINCE MOISTURE LEVELS  
WILL BE ABOVE AVERAGE AND MOISTURE SHOULD BE POOLING AHEAD OF  
SLOW-MOVING FRONTS/BOUNDARIES, PLAN TO INTRODUCE LARGE MARGINAL  
RISKS IN THE DAYS 4-5 (THURSDAY-FRIDAY) ERO ACROSS MUCH OF THE  
HIGH PLAINS AND BACK TOWARD THE NORTHERN ROCKIES FOR SOME  
POTENTIAL FOR FLASH FLOODING WITH SOME DOWNPOURS OF HEAVY RAIN  
THAT COULD BE SLOW-MOVING. THE DETAILS AND LOCAL FOCUS WILL BE  
DEPENDENT ON THE ULTIMATE SHAPE OF THE STILL QUITE UNCERTAIN LATER  
WEEK UPPER TROUGH POSITIONS AND FLOW INTERACTIONS.  
 
TATE/SCHICHTEL  
 
ADDITIONAL 3-7 DAY HAZARD INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND ON THE WPC  
MEDIUM RANGE HAZARDS OUTLOOK CHART AT:  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/THREATS/THREATS.PHP  
 
WPC MEDIUM RANGE 500MB HEIGHTS, SURFACE SYSTEMS, WEATHER GRIDS,  
QUANTITATIVE PRECIPITATION, EXPERIMENTAL EXCESSIVE RAINFALL  
OUTLOOK, WINTER WEATHER OUTLOOK PROBABILITIES AND HEAT INDICES ARE  
AT:  
 
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/MEDR/5DAYFCST500_WBG.GIF  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/MEDR/5DAYFCST_WBG_CONUS.GIF  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/5KM_GRIDS/5KM_GRIDSBODY.HTML  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/QPF/DAY4-7.SHTML  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/#PAGE=ERO  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/WWD/PWPF_D47/PWPF_MEDR.PHP?DAY=4  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/HEAT_INDEX.SHTML  
 

 
 

 
 
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