487  
FXUS62 KCAE 161008  
AFDCAE  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC  
508 AM EST SUN FEB 16 2025  
   
SYNOPSIS  
 
A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE THROUGH THE REGION THIS MORNING.  
WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED ALONG  
AND AHEAD OF THE FRONT. STRONG GUSTY WINDS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH  
THE DAY. THE WINDS WILL SLOWLY SUBSIDE LATER TONIGHT AS THE  
PRESSURE GRADIENT RELAXES. A COOL AND DRY AIR MASS WILL SETTLE  
OVER THE AREA THROUGH TUESDAY. A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL MOVE  
INTO THE SOUTHEASTERN STATES MID-WEEK WITH WINTRY PRECIPITATION  
POSSIBLE ACROSS THE NORTHERN MIDLANDS. A COLD AND DRY AIR MASS  
WILL BUILD INTO THE AREA LATE WEEK WITH BELOW NORMAL  
TEMPERATURES CONTINUING INTO NEXT WEEKEND.  
 
 
   
NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/  
 
KEY MESSAGE(S):  
 
- COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH THE AFTER SUNRISE.  
- LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE THROUGH FROM WEST  
TO EAST BETWEEN 7AM AND NOON.  
- WINDY CONDITIONS WILL LINGER THROUGH THE AFTERNOON BEHIND THE  
FRONT.  
 
EARLY THIS MORNING: WEDGE FRONT CONTINUES TO SLOWLY MOVE  
NORTH AND WEST. MILD TEMPERATURES IN THE MID 60S WILL CONTINUE  
EAST OF THIS BOUNDARY, WHILE MUCH COOLER TEMPERATURES IN MIDDLE  
40S TO AROUND 50 EXIST WEST OF IT. TEMPERATURES WILL EVENTUALLY  
MODERATE IN THE WESTERN CWA AS THE BOUNDARY FURTHER ERODES  
EARLY THIS MORNING AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT. LOW-LEVEL  
MIXING HAS FINALLY BEEN ABLE TO ERODE MUCH OF THE DENSE FOG THAT  
WAS ACROSS THE AREA EARLIER, SO HAVE ALLOWED THE DENSE FOG  
ADVISORY TO EXPIRE.  
 
TODAY AND TONIGHT: THE STRONG COLD FRONT WILL BE MOVING TOWARDS  
THE REGION THIS MORNING, WITH A PREFRONTAL LINE OF CONVECTION  
MOVING INTO THE WESTERN CSRA TOWARDS SUNRISE. THIS ACTIVITY  
WILL THEN RAPIDLY TRACK ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF THE FORECAST  
AREA THROUGH NOON. INSTABILITY ALONG THIS FRONT CONTINUES TO BE  
VERY WEAK, BUT AN EXTREMELY STRONG LOW-LEVEL JET OF BETWEEN  
50-70 KNOTS AT 850 MB WILL PRODUCE A HIGH AMOUNT OF SHEAR ALONG  
THE COLD FRONT AND PRECEDING LINE OF SHOWERS/ISOLATED STORMS.  
THESE WINDS WILL HAVE A HARD TIME MIXING DOWN AHEAD OF THE FRONT  
DUE TO A WEAK LOW-LEVEL INVERSION, ALTHOUGH EVEN WITH THAT,  
SOME INCREASE IN SURFACE WINDS WILL OCCUR WITH GUSTS ALSO  
INCREASING AFTER SUNRISE. HIGHER PROBABILITY OF SEEING THESE  
STRONGER WINDS MIXING DOWN TO THE SURFACE WILL OCCUR IN THE  
STRONGER SHOWERS AND ISOLATED STORMS AS THEY MOVE THROUGH  
BETWEEN 6 AM AND NOON.  
 
WITH THE AMOUNT OF SHEAR ALONG THE FRONT, CAN NOT ENTIRELY RULE  
OUT A FEW SEVERE WIND GUSTS OR EVEN AN ISOLATED TORNADO ALONG  
THE LINE AS IT MOVES ACROSS THE REGION THIS MORNING. WITH THE  
STRONG SYNOPTIC WINDS BOTH IN ADVANCE AND THEN BEHIND THE FRONT  
TODAY, A WIND ADVISORY WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT STARTING AT 5AM TO  
COVER THE PREFRONTAL GRADIENT WINDS AND COLD ADVECTION BEHIND  
THE LINE.  
 
AS FOR TEMPERATURES, READINGS SHOULD REMAIN IN THE 60S OVER THE  
EASTERN CWA, WHILE THE WESTERN COUNTIES RISE OUT OF THE 50S AND  
EVENTUALLY INTO THE 60S.  
 
BEHIND THE FRONT, WINDS WILL SHIFT OUT OF THE WEST AND REMAIN BREEZY  
THROUGHOUT THE AFTERNOON. COLD ADVECTION, RELATIVELY DEEP MIXING,  
AND UNIDIRECTIONAL SHEAR SHOULD EASILY BE ABLE TO MECHANICALLY MIX  
DOWN 25-35 MPH WINDS UNTIL EARLY THIS EVENING. WINDS WILL THEN  
DIMINISH AFTER SUNSET, ALTHOUGH GUSTS BETWEEN 15-20 MPH WILL  
STILL BE POSSIBLE OVERNIGHT. TEMPERATURES TONIGHT TURN MUCH  
COLDER BEHIND THE COLD FRONT, WITH OVERNIGHT LOWS IN THE LOW TO  
MID 30S EXPECTED.  
 
 
   
SHORT TERM /MONDAY THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT/  
 
KEY MESSAGE(S):  
 
-DRIER WITH BELOW AVERAGE TEMPERATURES.  
 
COLD ADVECTION LINGERS EARLY MONDAY WITH TEMPERATURES BELOW  
AVERAGE ACROSS THE AREA. LIMITED SPREAD IN BLENDED GUIDANCE  
DISTRIBUTION FOR TEMPERATURES WITH HIGHS GENERALLY IN THE LOW TO  
MID 50S WITH PLENTY OF SUNSHINE. HREF INDICATES A HIGH  
PROBABILITY THAT PWATS REMAIN AT OR BELOW A QUARTER INCH THROUGH  
THE DAY. LOWS WILL DIP TO AROUND FREEZING MONDAY NIGHT. OVERALL  
FLOW IS TRANSITIONING TO MORE ZONAL FOR TUESDAY WITH A  
DEEPENING TROUGH IN THE WESTERN US LEADING TO GRADUAL MOISTURE  
INCREASE. HIGH CLOUDS WILL LIKELY INCREASE THROUGH THE DAY BUT  
FORECAST SOUNDINGS INDICATE LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL REMAIN  
LIMITED. TEMPERATURES WILL BE CLOSER TO AVERAGE WITH HIGHS IN  
THE MID 50S NORTH TO LOW 60S SOUTHEAST. MOISTURE WILL CONTINUE  
TO INCREASE THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT, LEADING TO MILDER LOWS  
TUESDAY NIGHT, MAINLY IN THE MID TO UPPER 30S.  
 
 
   
LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/  
 
KEY MESSAGE(S):  
 
-POTENTIAL FOR WINTRY WEATHER MIDWEEK IN THE NORTHERNMOST  
PORTION OF THE FORECAST AREA.  
-COLDER THAN NORMAL INTO NEXT WEEKEND.  
 
ANOMALOUSLY STRONG SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE FROM CANADA WILL PUSH  
INTO THE PLAINS WEDNESDAY WITH NAEFS MEAN INDICATING MSLP WILL  
BE AROUND 1052MB, ABOVE THE 99TH CLIMATOLOGICAL PERCENTILE. THIS  
WILL LEAD TO HIGH PRESSURE RIDGING ALONG THE LEE SIDE OF THE  
APPALACHIANS. MOISTURE WILL INCREASE IN SOUTHWEST FLOW AHEAD OF  
A DEEPENING TROUGH AND LOW PRESSURE DEVELOPING ALONG THE GULF  
AND STRENGTHENING AS IT PUSHES INTO THE ATLANTIC WITH STRONG  
UPPER LEVEL DIVERGENCE IN THE RIGHT ENTRANCE REGION OF A JET  
STREAK. THIS WILL LEAD TO RAIN OVERSPREADING THE AREA WITH  
CONSENSUS CATEGORICAL POPS IN BLENDED GUIDANCE FOR MULTIPLE  
DAYS. WHAT REMAINS UNCERTAIN IS THE POTENTIAL FOR WINTER  
WEATHER. GUIDANCE CONTINUES TO FAVOR THE HIGHEST POTENTIAL FOR  
WINTER PRECIPITATION NORTH OF I-20 AND FORECAST SOUNDINGS DO  
INDICATE THAT THE COLD LAYER WILL REMAIN SHALLOW, TYPICAL IN A  
CAD SETUP WITH WARM ADVECTION AT 850MB. BLENDED GUIDANCE DOES  
CONTINUE TO FAVOR RELATIVELY HIGH PROBABILITY OF MEASURABLE  
FREEZING RAIN (GREATER THAN 0.01") BUT UNCERTAINTY AS TO THE  
IMPACTS ASSOCIATED WITH FREEZING RAIN WITH STILL UNCERTAINTY  
AMONGST THE GLOBAL MODELS (AND ENSEMBLE MEMBERS). PROBABILISTIC  
WINTER STORM SEVERITY INDEX (WSSI) INDICATES AROUND A 30  
PERCENT CHANCE OF MINOR IMPACTS NEAR THE NC/SC BORDER AND THIS  
WOULD LIKELY BE GENERALLY ON ELEVATED SURFACES WITH SURFACE  
TEMPERATURES MARGINALLY BELOW FREEZING. STILL A LOT OF DETAILS  
TO IRON OUT WITH THIS SYSTEM BUT HIGHER CONFIDENCE IN COLD  
CONTINUING INTO NEXT WEEKEND. EC EFI CONTINUES TO SHOW -0.7 TO  
-0.9 FOR TEMPERATURES THROUGH THE END OF THE WEEK INDICATING  
ANOMALOUSLY COLD LATE THIS WEEK INTO THE WEEKEND.  
 
 
   
AVIATION /10Z SUNDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/  
 
A PERIOD OF VFR CONDITIONS AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING LINE OF  
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS MORNING.SIGNIFICANT WIND SHEAR  
EXPECTED THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON.  
 
FOG AND LOW CLOUDS HAVE FINALLY LIFTED AT ALL TAF LOCATIONS AS  
LOW-LEVEL MIXING HAS BEGUN AHEAD OF THE APPROACHING COLD FRONT  
FROM THE WEST.  
 
A PREFRONTAL LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXISTS AHEAD OF  
THE COLD FRONT, AND THIS WILL BE MOVING INTO THE CSRA SITES OF  
AGS/DNL BETWEEN 11Z-12Z, THEN RAPIDLY MOVE EASTWARD THROUGH  
CAE/CUB, THEN OGB, BEFORE PUSHING INTO THE COASTAL PLAIN BY  
NOON. THERE WILL BE A PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANT RAIN, ISOLATED  
THUNDERSTORMS, ALONG WITH MVFR CONDITIONS AND STRONG GUSTY  
WINDS AS THE FRONT MOVES THROUGH EACH SITE THIS MORNING. CAN NOT  
RULE OUT SEVERE WINDS AS THIS LINE OF SHOWERS/STORMS MOVES  
THROUGH EITHER.  
 
VERTICAL WIND PROFILES SHOWING VERY STRONG WINDS OF 50+ KTS AT  
2KFT OFF THE SURFACE, AND THESE STRONG WINDS ALOFT WILL REMAIN  
INTO THE EARLY AFTERNOON AS THE FRONT MOVES THROUGH. HAVE  
CONTINUED WITH LLWS AT ALL LOCATIONS INTO THE EARLY AFTERNOON,  
THEN THE JET WILL SLOWLY WEAKEN. HOWEVER AFTER NOON, THE SURFACE  
WINDS WILL BE STRONG ENOUGH TO DROP LLWS, ALTHOUGH VERY BREEZY  
CONDITIONS WILL REMAIN AT THE SURFACE THROUGH SUNSET. IN  
ADDITION, VFR CONDITIONS WILL RETURN BY EARLY AFTERNOON FROM  
WEST TO EAST.  
 
EXTENDED AVIATION OUTLOOK...A APPROACHING SYSTEM ON WEDNESDAY  
AND THURSDAY WILL BRING SOME PRECIPITATION AND ASSOCIATED  
RESTRICTIONS.  
 
 
   
CAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES  
 
SC...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM EST THIS EVENING FOR SCZ016-018-  
020>022-025>031-035-037-038-041-115-116-135>137.  
GA...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM EST THIS EVENING FOR GAZ040-063>065-  
077.  
 
 
 
 
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