895  
FXUS02 KWBC 060706  
PMDEPD  
 
EXTENDED FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NWS WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER COLLEGE PARK MD  
305 AM EDT SUN AUG 06 2023  
 
VALID 12Z WED AUG 09 2023 - 12Z SUN AUG 13 2023  
   
..HEAT WAVE TO PERSIST OVER THE SOUTH INTO THE SOUTHWEST
 
 
...EXCESSIVE RAIN/FLASH FLOOD THREAT FOR PORTIONS OF THE MIDDLE  
MISSISSIPPI AND TENNESSEE VALLEYS WEDNESDAY...  
 
   
..OVERVIEW
 
 
AN ELONGATED UPPER RIDGE EXTENDING FROM NORTHERN MEXICO/SOUTHERN  
TEXAS ACROSS THE GULF OF MEXICO AND FLORIDA PENINSULA AS OF  
WEDNESDAY SHOULD WEAKEN A BIT INTO THURSDAY BUT THEN STRENGTHEN  
ONCE AGAIN OVER THE SOUTHERN ROCKIES/PLAINS AND NORTHERN MEXICO  
LATE WEEK THROUGH THE WEEKEND. THIS RIDGE WILL MAINTAIN THE  
ONGOING SOUTHERN TIER HEAT WAVE WITH DAILY RECORD HIGH  
TEMPERATURES POSSIBLE EVERY DAY OF THE FORECAST PERIOD, WITH THE  
MOST ANOMALOUS TEMPERATURES LIKELY TO BE OVER TEXAS. TO THE  
NORTH, EXPECT BROADLY CYCLONIC FLOW WITH THE AXIS OF A BROAD  
TROUGH CENTERED OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF THE LOWER 48. EMBEDDED  
SHORTWAVES PROGRESSING FROM THE PACIFIC INTO/THROUGH THE TROUGH  
WILL PRODUCE A SERIES OF CENTRAL-EASTERN U.S. WAVES/FRONTAL  
SYSTEMS THAT COULD PRODUCE EPISODES OF LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL.  
THE SCALE OF THE SHORTWAVES IS SMALL ENOUGH TO YIELD LOWER  
PREDICTABILITY FOR DAY-TO-DAY SPECIFICS VERSUS THE LARGER SCALE  
PATTERN BY THE LATTER HALF OF THE PERIOD. IN THE WEST, UPPER  
LEVEL TROUGHING AND A WEAKENING FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL BRING RAINFALL  
TO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST INTO WEDNESDAY FOLLOWED BY RISING UPPER  
HEIGHTS DOWNSTREAM FROM AN UPPER LOW SETTLING OVER OR NEAR THE  
ALEUTIANS. MEANWHILE THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER IS ISSUING  
ADVISORIES FOR TROPICAL STORM EUGENE IN THE PACIFIC. THE SURFACE  
REFLECTION SHOULD DISSIPATE WELL OFFSHORE AFTER WEDNESDAY BUT THE  
SYSTEM'S UPPER LEVEL ENERGY AND POSSIBLY SOME MOISTURE COULD GET  
INCORPORATED INTO AN UPPER TROUGH/LOW FORECAST TO EVOLVE ALONG OR  
A LITTLE OFFSHORE THE CALIFORNIA COAST.  
 
   
..GUIDANCE EVALUATION/PREDICTABILITY ASSESSMENT
 
 
THE LATEST CYCLE OF MODEL/ENSEMBLE GUIDANCE OFFERS NOTHING NEW IN  
TERMS OF THE RECENT THEME OF GOOD PATTERN AGREEMENT BUT LOW  
CONFIDENCE IN VARIOUS SPECIFICS DUE TO THE LOW PREDICTABILITY OF  
EMBEDDED SHORTWAVES. THEREFORE THE FORECAST APPROACH CONTINUES TO  
FAVOR AN OPERATIONAL MODEL BLEND EARLY AND THEN A STEADY SHIFT  
TOWARD MORE ENSEMBLE INPUT (12Z ECENS/CMCENS AND 18Z GEFS) TOWARD  
THE END OF THE PERIOD NEXT WEEKEND.  
 
AFTER THE UNSEASONABLY STRONG SYSTEM DEPARTS FROM NORTHERN NEW  
ENGLAND ON WEDNESDAY, THERE ARE AT LEAST SOME COMMON IDEAS FOR THE  
TRAILING WAVY SOUTHERN TIER FRONT WHOSE EASTERN END SHOULD LIFT  
NORTHWARD AS ONE EMBEDDED WAVE REACHES INTO THE MID-ATLANTIC.  
HOWEVER SHORTWAVE DIFFERENCES ALOFT LEAD TO A FAIR AMOUNT OF  
SPREAD FOR SPECIFICS ALONG THE EAST COAST BY FRIDAY. MEANWHILE A  
PACIFIC NORTHWEST/BRITISH COLUMBIA SHORTWAVE WILL LIKELY CONTINUE  
EASTWARD AND BRING AN AREA OF LOW PRESSURE AND ASSOCIATED FRONTAL  
SYSTEM INTO THE UPPER MIDWEST TOWARD THE END OF THE WEEK. FROM  
THAT POINT ONWARD THERE IS NOTABLE TIMING SPREAD, WITH LATEST  
GFS/CMC RUNS TENDING TO BE ON THE FAST SIDE AND RECENT  
ECMWF/ECENS/CMCENS RUNS SLOWER. WITH MODEST CONFIDENCE THE BLEND  
HAS MAINTAINED SOMEWHAT MORE ECMWF/ECENS/CMCENS WEIGHT LATER IN  
THE PERIOD GIVEN THEIR RELATIVE MAJORITY STATUS WITH BETTER  
CONTINUITY. SOME GEFS RUNS HAVE HAD DIFFICULTY DEPICTING THIS  
SYSTEM. GFS/ECMWF RUNS AND TO SOME DEGREE ENSEMBLE MEANS ARE  
SUGGESTING ANOTHER FRONT MAY REACH THE NORTHERN TIER BY NEXT  
SUNDAY.  
 
   
..WEATHER/HAZARDS HIGHLIGHTS
 
 
DURING THE WEDNESDAY-THURSDAY NIGHT PERIOD COVERED BY THE DAYS 4-5  
EXCESSIVE RAINFALL OUTLOOKS, THE MOST PROMINENT AREA OF FOCUS FOR  
HEAVY RAINFALL/FLASH FLOOD POTENTIAL WILL EXTEND FROM THE  
EAST-CENTRAL PLAINS INTO THE APPALACHIANS AND MID-ATLANTIC. THE  
DAY 4 ERO DEPICTS A SLIGHT RISK AREA EXTENDING FROM EASTERN KANSAS  
INTO PARTS OF THE LOWER OHIO VALLEY AND TENNESSEE VALLEY AS A  
SOUTHERN PLAINS WAVE SHOULD INCREASE THE FLOW OF MOISTURE  
INTERACTING WITH A LEADING WARM FRONT WHILE A SEPARATE FRONT DROPS  
FROM THE NORTHERN TIER INTO THE MIDWEST. GUIDANCE SIGNALS ARE  
STEADILY IMPROVING WITH SHOWING THE POTENTIAL FOR HEAVY CONVECTION  
OVER THIS GENERAL AREA, THOUGH WITH TYPICAL DETAIL SPREAD FOR THIS  
FAR OUT IN TIME. AN EMBEDDED UPGRADE MAY BE POSSIBLE DEPENDING ON  
HOW SHORTER-TERM GUIDANCE RESOLVES THIS CONVECTION AND POTENTIAL  
OVERLAP WITH SENSITIVE AREAS DUE TO ANTECEDENT CONDITIONS. BY DAY  
5, THE BEST MODEL/ENSEMBLE CLUSTERING BECOMES MORE CONFINED OVER  
THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS WHERE THE OUTLOOK SHOWS A SLIGHT RISK  
AREA. SIGNALS ARE MORE DIFFUSE WITHIN THE SURROUNDING MARGINAL  
RISK AREA. MEANWHILE MOST GUIDANCE IS SHOWING AN AREA OF LOCALLY  
HEAVY RAINFALL POTENTIAL OVER PARTS OF THE NORTHERN PLAINS/UPPER  
MIDWEST IN THE DAY 5 PERIOD DUE TO THE APPROACHING NORTHERN TIER  
SYSTEM. THE COMBINATION OF FORECAST RAINFALL TOTALS, MODERATE  
PROGRESSION, AND DETAIL SPREAD MERIT A MARGINAL RISK AREA FOR THIS  
ACTIVITY.  
 
FROM FRIDAY ONWARD EXPECT ADDITIONAL AREAS OF RAIN AND  
THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE EASTERN U.S. BUT WITH STEADILY DECREASING  
CONFIDENCE FOR SPECIFICS DUE TO UNCERTAINTY WITH DETAILS/TIMING OF  
INDIVIDUAL WAVES/FRONTAL SYSTEMS. ANOTHER AREA OF SHOWERS/STORMS  
MAY DEVELOP OVER THE PLAINS DURING THE WEEKEND. THERE HAS BEEN  
SOME CONTINUITY RECENTLY FOR A POTENTIAL INCREASE OF DEEP MOISTURE  
TO REACH THE FLORIDA PENINSULA NEXT WEEKEND, WITH CORRESPONDING  
HIGHER RAINFALL TOTALS. THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST SHOULD SEE SOME  
RAINFALL CONTINUE INTO WEDNESDAY AS A WEAKENING FRONT REACHES THE  
AREA. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE OVER  
THE FOUR CORNERS STATES AND THE SIERRA NEVADA. SOME UPPER LEVEL  
MOISTURE FROM TROPICAL STORM EUGENE MAY ENTER THE WEST BUT AT THIS  
TIME IT IS NOT CLEAR HOW MUCH THIS COULD AFFECT RAINFALL TOTALS.  
 
THE ONGOING HEAT WAVE OVER THE SOUTHERN TIER SHOULD CONTINUE  
THROUGH THE WEEK AND NEXT WEEKEND, WITH GREATEST EMPHASIS OVER THE  
SOUTHERN HIGH PLAINS WHERE HIGHS COULD REACH 10-15F ABOVE NORMAL  
ESPECIALLY MID-LATE WEEK. TEMPERATURES MAY REACH OR EXCEED DAILY  
RECORD HIGHS MOST DAYS DURING THE PERIOD FROM THE CENTRAL/WESTERN  
GULF COAST INTO THE SOUTHERN ROCKIES. THE DESERT SOUTHWEST SHOULD  
SEE A BRIEF LULL IN THE 110F+ HIGHS MID-LATE WEEK BUT TEMPERATURES  
MAY REACH INTO THE LOW 110S ONCE AGAIN BY NEXT SUNDAY AS THE UPPER  
RIDGE STRENGTHENS. THE FLORIDA PENINSULA COULD ALSO SEE A FEW  
RECORD HIGHS. RECORD WARM LOWS WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS A BROADER  
PORTION OF THE SOUTHERN TIER EACH NIGHT. HIGH HUMIDITY SHOULD LEAD  
TO MAXIMUM HEAT INDICES AT LEAST IN THE 110-115F RANGE ALONG AND  
NEAR THE WESTERN HALF OF THE GULF COAST. IN CONTRAST, THE FORECAST  
PATTERN WILL TEND TO FAVOR NEAR TO BELOW NORMAL HIGH TEMPERATURES  
FROM THE NORTHWESTERN U.S. INTO THE MIDWEST/OHIO VALLEY. THE  
UPPER TROUGH/LOW DEVELOPING NEAR CALIFORNIA SHOULD KEEP HIGHS OVER  
MOST OF THE STATE NEAR OR SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL AS WELL. AREAS  
NEAR THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST COAST MAY BE AN EXCEPTION WITH A  
BUILDING UPPER RIDGE HELPING TO PUSH READINGS ABOVE NORMAL BY LATE  
WEEK AND NEXT WEEKEND.  
 
RAUSCH  
 
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 FORECAST, EXCESSIVE RAINFALL OUTLOOK,  
WINTER WEATHER OUTLOOK PROBABILITIES, HEAT INDICES AND KEY  
MESSAGES 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  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/#PAGE=OVW  
 

 
 

 
 
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