271  
FXUS62 KCHS 211721  
AFDCHS  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC  
1221 PM EST FRI FEB 21 2025  
   
SYNOPSIS
 
 
COLD HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD INTO THE REGION THROUGH THE START  
OF THE WEEKEND. A WEAK DISTURBANCE WILL PASS TO OUR SOUTH ON  
MONDAY, FOLLOWED BY MORE HIGH PRESSURE INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK.  
 

 
   
NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/
 
 
EARLY THIS AFTERNOON: NO CHANGE TO THE FORECAST FOR THE  
AFTERNOON. PREVIOUS DISCUSSION CONTINUES BELOW.  
 
LATE THIS MORNING: COLD AND DRY HIGH PRESSURE WILL PREVAIL  
TODAY. WE ARE CERTAINLY OFF TO A VERY COLD START, WITH MANY  
PLACES HAVING DIPPED INTO THE MID 20S LAST NIGHT. MOST LOCATIONS  
ARE NOW RISING ABOVE FREEZING WITH FULL SUN UNDERWAY. CLEAR  
SKIES WILL PREVAIL FOR MOST OF THE DAY UNTIL THIN CIRRUS STARTS  
TO ARRIVE FROM THE WEST LATER THIS AFTERNOON. LOW-LEVEL  
THICKNESS OFF THE 12Z KCHS RAOB SUPPORTS HIGHS SIMILAR TO WHAT  
WE ALREADY HAVE IN THE FORECAST. LOOK FOR TEMPERATURES TO PEAK  
IN THE MID TO UPPER 40S ACROSS SOUTHEAST SC AND THE UPPER 40S  
AND MAYBE EVEN A FEW 50S ACROSS SOUTHEAST GA.  
 
TONIGHT, THE PATTERN WILL FEATURE ZONAL H5 FLOW AS THE CENTER  
OF THE SFC HIGH BUILDS EAST OF THE APPALACHIANS ACROSS VA/NC.  
MID AND HIGH CLOUDS SHOULD STREAM WEST TO EAST ACROSS THE  
FORECAST AREA, KEEPING CONDITIONS MOSTLY CLEAR TO PARTLY CLOUDY.  
LOW TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM THE MID 20S INLAND  
TO THE MID TO UPPER 30S ACROSS THE COASTAL COUNTIES. GIVEN LIGHT  
TO CALM WINDS TONIGHT, NO COLD WEATHER ADVISORY IS ANTICIPATED  
FOR TONIGHT.  
 

 
   
SHORT TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY/
 
 
SATURDAY: THE MID-LEVELS WILL CONSIST OF A SHORTWAVE OVER THE  
MID-MS VALLEY IN THE MORNING. IT'LL SHIFT EAST AS TIME  
PROGRESSES, PASSING JUST TO OUR NORTH IN THE EVENING, THEN  
OFFSHORE OVERNIGHT. THERE WILL BE SOME LIFT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS  
DISTURBANCE, BUT NOT A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT. AT THE SURFACE, HIGH  
PRESSURE WILL BE CENTERED JUST TO OUR NORTH IN THE MORNING.  
IT'LL SHIFT OFFSHORE INTO THE AFTERNOON. AT THAT TIME, WEAK  
TROUGHING IS EXPECTED TO FORM OFF OUR COAST, THEN PREVAIL INTO  
THE EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. A SECOND AREA OF HIGH PRESSURE WILL  
THEN APPROACH FROM THE WEST LATE AT NIGHT. MOISTURE IS EXPECTED  
TO INCREASE WITH THE TROUGH, WITH THE HIGHEST VALUES REMAINING  
JUST OFF OUR COAST. LIKEWISE, BOTH THE SYNOPTIC MODELS AND LONG-  
RANGE CAMS POINT TOWARDS SOME SHOWERS OFFSHORE, MAINLY IN THE  
LATE AFTERNOON INTO THE FIRST PART OF THE NIGHT. LAND AREAS ARE  
EXPECTED TO REMAIN DRY, AS THE HIGHS WIN OUT. LOW-LEVEL  
THICKNESS VALUES AND COLD 850 MB TEMPERATURES SUPPORT HIGH  
TEMPERATURES IN THE MID TO MAYBE UPPER 50S. THOUGH, THIS MAY BE  
LOWER AS CLOUDS INCREASE DURING THE DAY. MOSTLY CLOUDY SKIES IN  
THE EVENING WILL CLEAR OVERNIGHT, LEADING TO A LARGE TEMPERATURE  
SPREAD. TEMPERATURES FAR INLAND SHOULD BOTTOM OUT NEAR  
FREEZING, WHILE NEAR THE IMMEDIATE COAST THEY SHOULD BE IN THE  
MID TO UPPER 30S, AND THE LOW TO MID 40S AT THE BEACHES.  
 
SUNDAY: WEAK MID-LEVEL TROUGHING WILL BE LOCATED OFF THE EAST  
COAST IN THE MORNING, LEADING TO NW FLOW OVERHEAD. ADDITIONALLY,  
A SHORTWAVE WILL BE LOCATED OVER THE SOUTHERN PLAINS. IT'LL  
SHIFT EAST AS TIME PROGRESSES, BECOMING LOCATED OVER THE  
SOUTHEAST U.S. LATE AT NIGHT. WEAK SURFACE TROUGHING LOCATED  
JUST OFF OUR COAST IN THE MORNING WILL BE PUSHED AWAY BY HIGH  
PRESSURE BUILDING IN FROM THE WEST. THE HIGH SHOULD PASS TO OUR  
NORTH LATE IN THE DAY, THEN WEAKEN AS IT MOVES OFFSHORE  
OVERNIGHT. MEANWHILE, A STORM SYSTEM WILL BE IMPACTING THE  
NORTHERN GULF STATES DURING THE DAY, SHIFTING EASTWARD WITH  
TIME. IT SHOULD START IMPACTING THE SOUTHEAST LATE AT NIGHT. THE  
HIGH WILL BRING DRY CONDITIONS DURING THE DAY AND INTO THE  
EVENING. MOISTURE WILL INCREASE FROM THE SOUTH AFTER MIDNIGHT.  
LIKEWISE, MOST OF THE MODELS HAVE ISOLATED SHOWERS SOUTH OF I-16  
DURING THAT TIME PERIOD. HENCE, WE WENT WITH SLIGHT CHANCE  
POPS. WITH A DECENT AMOUNT OF SUN, HIGH TEMPERATURES SHOULD  
RANGE FROM AROUND 60 DEGREES TO MAYBE THE MIDDLE 60S, EXCEPT  
COOLER AT THE BEACHES. INCREASING CLOUDS LATE AT NIGHT SHOULD  
LIMIT LOW TEMPERATURES TO THE MID 30S INLAND TO THE MID 40S  
ALONG THE BEACHES.  
 
MONDAY: THE MID-LEVELS WILL CONSIST OF A SHORTWAVE OVER THE  
SOUTHEAST U.S. IN THE MORNING. IT'LL SLOWLY SHIFT OFFSHORE BY  
LATE IN THE DAY. AT THE SURFACE, A STORM SYSTEM WILL BE  
IMPACTING THE SOUTHEAST U.S. IN THE MORNING. THOUGH, MOST OF  
IT'S ENERGY SHOULD PASS JUST TO OUR SOUTH. LIKEWISE, MODELS HAVE  
MOST OF THE MOISTURE AND SHOWER ACTIVITY IN THIS LOCATION. THE  
NBM KEEPS OUR AREA FAIRLY DRY, BUT THIS MAY BE UNDERDONE BASED  
ON SOME OF THE SYNOPTIC MODELS. THIS PORTION OF THE FORECAST  
WILL NEED TO BE ADJUSTED. HIGHS MAY RISE TO NEAR NORMAL.  
 

 
   
LONG TERM /MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY/
 
 
HIGH PRESSURE WILL BRING DRY CONDITIONS THROUGH WEDNESDAY. A  
COLD FRONT SHOULD BRING A ROUND OF SHOWERS ON THURSDAY.  
TEMPERATURES SHOULD BE ABOVE NORMAL THROUGHOUT THE LONG TERM.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /17Z FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/
 
 
VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL AT KCHS, KJZI, AND KSAV THROUGH 18Z  
SATURDAY.  
 
EXTENDED AVIATION OUTLOOK: A WEAK DISTURBANCE WILL PASS TO OUR  
SOUTH ON MONDAY, BRINGING LOW PROBABILITIES OF FLIGHT  
RESTRICTIONS, MAINLY TO OUR GA COUNTIES. OTHERWISE, VFR SHOULD  
PREVAIL THE REST OF THE TIME.  
 

 
   
MARINE
 
 
THIS AFTERNOON: CONDITIONS HAVE IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY OVER THE  
LAST COUPLE OF HOURS AS THE GRADIENT HAS RELAXED. THE SMALL  
CRAFT ADVISORY FOR THE NEARSHORE WATERS HAS EXPIRED BUT REMAINS  
IN EFFECT FOR THE OUTER WATERS THROUGH THE AFTERNOON, MAINLY FOR  
SEAS. THROUGH THE REST OF THE DAY WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO BE 10-15  
KNOTS ACROSS THE NEARSHORE WATERS WITH SEAS UP TO 3-5 FEET. THE  
OUTER GA WATERS COULD STILL SEE A FEW GUSTS UP TO 25 KNOTS WITH  
SEAS 4-6 FEET.  
 
A SFC RIDGE WILL DEVELOP OVER THE MARINE ZONES TONIGHT,  
SUPPORTING NORTHEAST AROUND 10 KTS. SEAS SHOULD GENERALLY RANGE  
BETWEEN 2 TO 3 FT.  
 
EXTENDED MARINE: LOTS OF SYNOPTIC CHANGES WILL OCCUR. HIGH  
PRESSURE WILL BE CENTERED JUST TO OUR NORTH SATURDAY MORNING.  
IT'LL SHIFT OFFSHORE SATURDAY AFTERNOON. AT THAT TIME, WEAK  
TROUGHING IS EXPECTED TO FORM OVER THE COASTAL WATERS, THEN  
PREVAIL SATURDAY EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. A SECOND AREA OF HIGH  
PRESSURE WILL THEN APPROACH FROM THE WEST LATE SATURDAY NIGHT.  
THE TROUGH WILL BE PUSHED AWAY BY THIS HIGH ON SUNDAY. THE HIGH  
SHOULD PASS TO OUR NORTH LATE SUNDAY, THEN WEAKEN AS IT MOVES  
OFFSHORE SUNDAY NIGHT. A STORM SYSTEM SHOULD START IMPACTING THE  
SOUTHEAST U.S. LATE SUNDAY NIGHT. THOUGH, MOST OF IT'S ENERGY  
SHOULD PASS JUST TO OUR SOUTH ON MONDAY. HIGH PRESSURE WILL THEN  
BUILD IN FROM THE WEST LATER MONDAY AND PREVAIL THROUGH THE  
MIDDLE OF THE WEEK. EVEN WITH ALL OF THESE CHANGES, NO MARINE  
HEADLINES ARE EXPECTED.  
 

 
   
CLIMATE
 
 
RECORD LOW MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES:  
 
FEBRUARY 21:  
KCHS: 47/2020  
 

 
   
CHS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
GA...NONE.  
SC...NONE.  
MARINE...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 5 PM EST THIS AFTERNOON FOR AMZ374.  
 

 
 

 
 
NEAR TERM...BSH/NED  
SHORT TERM...  
LONG TERM...  
AVIATION...BSH  
MARINE...NED  
 
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