471  
FXUS62 KCHS 301754  
AFDCHS  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC  
154 PM EDT FRI MAY 30 2025  
   
SYNOPSIS  
 
A COLD FRONT WILL SWEEP THROUGH OUR AREA THIS EVENING. HIGH  
PRESSURE WILL BUILD IN OVER THE WEEKEND AND PREVAIL THROUGH THE  
MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK.  
 
 
   
NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/  
 
1PM: REGIONAL RADARS CURRENTLY SHOW THE LINE OF CONVECTION WELL  
UPSTREAM AND MOVING INTO THE APPALACHIANS. TIMING STILL LOOKS  
TO BE ON TRACK FOR AN ETA AROUND 4PM (+/- 1 HR) INTO OUR FAR  
WESTERN COUNTIES AND THUS WE INCREASED POPS TO LIKELY ACROSS THE  
AREA TO ACCOUNT FOR THE GREATER CONFIDENCE. CAMS HAVE BEEN  
CONSISTENTLY SHOWING BOWING SEGMENTS APPEAR IN SIMULATED  
REFLECTIVITY MOVING ACROSS SOME PORTIONS OF THE SOUTHEAST SOUTH  
CAROLINA COUNTIES, WHICH CONFIRMS THE WIND THREAT IS STILL A  
MAJOR PLAYER ESPECIALLY FOR THAT AREA. OTHERWISE, OUR EARLIER  
THINKING STILL REMAINS THE SAME.  
 
TODAY: A SHORTWAVE WILL MOVE EAST OF THE AREA BY DAYBREAK.  
LINGERING DEBRIS CLOUDINESS SHOULD BURN OFF BY MID-MORNING AS  
NVA DEVELOPS IN ITS WAKE. VEERING BL WIND PROFILES WILL PRODUCE  
SOME COMPRESSIONAL HEATING WHICH, ALONG WITH MOSTLY SUNNY SKIES  
LATE MORNING INTO EARLY AFTERNOON, SHOULD PUSH TEMPS INTO THE  
MID TO UPPER 80S. WITH THE MIXED LAYER EXPANDING TO ABOUT 5 KFT,  
SURFACE DEWPOINTS MAY MIX OUT SOMEWHAT, THOUGH BLENDED GUIDANCE  
STILL KEEPS VALUES IN THE UPPER 60S IN MOST AREAS. PWS WILL SEE  
A LATE MORNING MINIMUM BEFORE INCREASING BACK ABOVE 1.75" LATER  
THIS AFTERNOON. A SHORTWAVE WILL MOVE THROUGH CENTRAL AND  
EASTERN NC LATER THIS AFTERNOON WITH A WEAKER VORT MOVING  
THROUGH SC/GA. A COLD FRONT IS EXPECTED TO DROP SOUTHEAST INTO  
OUR FORECAST AREA LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND MOVE OFFSHORE BY  
MIDNIGHT.  
 
THE MAIN QUESTION IS COVERAGE AND INTENSITY OF CONVECTION AHEAD  
OF THE COLD FRONT. THE VEERING BL FLOW WILL RESULT IN WINDS  
RELATIVELY PARALLEL TO THE FRONT BY THE TIME IT REACHES OUR  
AREA. THIS DECREASE IN LOW-LEVEL CONVERGENCE MAY RESULT IN A  
THINNING OR WEAKENING CONVECTIVE BAND AS IT MOVES THROUGH.  
HOWEVER, IF A PARTICULARLY ROBUST MCS DEVELOPS UPSTREAM IT COULD  
HOLD ITS MOMENTUM AS IT MOVES INTO OUR AREA. CONVECTIVE INDICES  
ARE FORECAST TO BE FAIRLY IMPRESSIVE. 0-6 KM BULK SHEAR APPROACHES  
45 KT ALONG THE SC/GA COAST LATE THIS AFTERNOON WHILE SBCAPE  
COULD BE PUSHING 2000 J/KG IN SPOTS. DAMAGING WINDS WOULD BE THE  
PRIMARY THREAT, THOUGH LIFTED INDICES OF -6C WOULD SUPPORT SOME  
HAIL RISK, AND 1-2 EHI WOULDN'T COMPLETELY RULE OUT AN ISOLATED  
TORNADO. IT APPEARS THE EARLIEST WE COULD SEE THE STORMS MOVING  
INTO OUR NORTHWESTERN ZONES WOULD BE 2-3PM WITH THE GREATEST  
THREAT WINDOW 4-8PM.  
 
TONIGHT: COOLER, DRIER AIR WILL SPREAD IN FROM THE WEST LATE  
THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. SATURDAY MORNING LOWS COULD DIP INTO  
THE UPPER 50S AWAY FROM THE COAST.  
 
 
   
SHORT TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY/  
 
THE MID-LEVELS WILL CONSIST OF A LONGWAVE TROUGH OVER THE EAST COAST  
SATURDAY MORNING, WITH AN EMBEDDED LOW NORTH OF NEW ENGLAND. THESE  
FEATURES SHOULD HOVER IN PLACE THROUGH SUNDAY. BY SUNDAY NIGHT, THE  
LOW LIFTS FURTHER NORTH AND WEAKENS, WHILE A WEAK SHORTWAVE ROUNDS  
THE BASE OF THE TROUGH, MOVING OVER OUR AREA LATE SUNDAY NIGHT OR  
MONDAY MORNING. THE TROUGH AXIS SHOULD THEN SHIFT OFFSHORE LATE  
MONDAY, FOLLOWED BY RIDGING BUILDING IN FROM THE WEST. AT THE  
SURFACE, HIGH PRESSURE CENTERED OVER THE SOUTHERN PLAINS SATURDAY  
MORNING WILL SHIFT OVER THE LOWER MS VALLEY SATURDAY EVENING, THEN  
NEAR THE FL PANHANDLE SUNDAY MORNING, WHILE WEAKENING AND BECOMING  
DIFFUSE. THE WEAK HIGH MAY BE IN THE VICINITY OF OUR AREA SUNDAY  
EVENING. ADDITIONALLY, A DISSIPATING COLD FRONT MAY MOVE THROUGH OUR  
AREA LATE SUNDAY NIGHT. AFTERWARDS, HIGH PRESSURE IS EXPECTED TO  
STRENGTHEN OVER THE MIDDLE APPALACHIANS MONDAY MORNING, THEN PASSING  
TO OUR NORTH BY LATER MONDAY. THE HIGH IS EXPECTED TO BE THE PRIMARY  
SYNOPTIC FEATURE IN OUR AREA, LIMITING MOISTURE. PWATS SHOULD DROP  
BELOW 1" ON SATURDAY BEFORE RISING BACK ABOVE 1" SATURDAY  
EVENING/NIGHT, THEN CONTINUING TO RISE TO ~1.25" BY LATE SUNDAY.  
ALL OF THESE VALUES ARE BELOW NORMAL. HENCE, THE DETERMINISTIC  
MODELS KEEP OUR AREA DRY ON SATURDAY. SOME MODELS HINT AT UPSTREAM  
CONVECTION MAKING IT TO OUR AREA LATE IN THE DAY SUNDAY AND MONDAY.  
BUT GIVEN THE PWATS, IT MIGHT BE HARD TO GET ANY RAINFALL. SO WE  
KEPT THE FORECAST DRY. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL PEAK IN THE LOW TO MID  
80S SATURDAY, THEN RISE TO THE MID TO UPPER 80S SUNDAY AND MONDAY,  
EXCEPT COOLER AT THE BEACHES DUE TO THE SEA BREEZE. SATURDAY AND  
SUNDAY NIGHT LOWS SHOULD RANGE FROM THE LOWER 60S FAR INLAND TO THE  
UPPER 60S/LOWER 70S AT OR NEAR THE BEACHES.  
 
 
   
LONG TERM /MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY/  
 
MID-LEVEL RIDGING WILL BUILD OVER THE EAST COAST MONDAY NIGHT INTO  
TUESDAY, THEN POSSIBLY PREVAIL THROUGH THURSDAY. SURFACE HIGH  
PRESSURE INITIALLY OVER THE MIDDLE APPALACHIANS SHOULD SHIFT INTO  
THE ATLANTIC, ALL WHILE BEING THE DOMINANT WEATHER FEATURE FOR OUR  
WEATHER. THIS WILL LEAD TO MOSTLY DRY CONDITIONS AND GRADUALLY  
RISING TEMPERATURES EACH DAY.  
 
 
   
AVIATION /18Z FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/  
 
A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS IS EXPECTED TO PRECEDE A COLD FRONT  
AND MOVE ACROSS THE TERMINALS EARLY THIS EVENING. WE INTRODUCED  
A 2-HR TEMPO OF TSRA WITH GUSTY WINDS AND LOWERED VISIBILITIES  
DURING THE TIME OF IMPACT. STORMS WILL BE MOVING FROM THE  
NORTHWEST AND LIKELY TO REACH KCHS/KJZI AROUND 22Z AND THEN  
KSAV ABOUT AN HOUR LATER. ALSO STORMS SHOULD BE MOVING  
RELATIVELY QUICK SO THE 2 HOUR WINDOW WOULD LIKELY BE PLENTY  
LONG ENOUGH TO COVER THE IMPACTS. THESE STORMS COULD BE STRONG  
TO SEVERE, WITH THE GREATER CHANCE ACROSS KCHS/KJZI. THEREFORE  
WE INCLUDED GUSTS OF 30-35 KT AT KCHS AND KJZI WITH 25 KT AT  
KSAV, BUT THERE COULD BE STRONGER GUSTS IF THE SEVERE THREAT  
COMES TO REALIZATION. HOWEVER, THE ACTIVITY COULD BE ON A  
DIMINISHING TREND BY THE TIME IT REACHES THE TERMINALS, SO THERE  
IS STILL SOME UNCERTAINTY REGARDING THE STRENGTH. ONCE  
CONVECTION ENDS, WE EXPECT FAIRLY RAPID CLEARING WITH CLEAR  
SKIES AND SOLID VFR CONDITIONS BY SATURDAY MORNING.  
 
EXTENDED AVIATION OUTLOOK: GUSTY W WINDS ARE POSSIBLE ON SATURDAY.  
OTHERWISE, VFR SHOULD PREVAIL.  
 
 
   
MARINE  
 
WE OPTED TO ISSUE A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR THE CHARLESTON  
COUNTY NEARSHORE WATERS INTO TONIGHT, CONSIDERING SOME OBS HAVE  
BEEN SHOWING GUSTS 23-25 KT SO FAR THIS MORNING.  
 
SW TO WSW WINDS WILL INCREASE LATE THIS MORNING THROUGH THE  
AFTERNOON AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHES. WIND GUSTS IN CHARLESTON  
HARBOR AND THE NEARSHORE CHARLESTON COUNTY WATERS COULD REACH 25  
KT FOR A FEW HOURS LATE THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH EARLY EVENING.  
FOR NOW WE CAPPED WINDS AT 15-20 KT IN BOTH ZONES GIVEN THE  
MARGINAL NATURE AND LOW-CONFIDENCE, HOWEVER LATER SHIFTS MAY  
NEED TO REASSESS FOR A POSSIBLE SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY. WINDS  
BECOME W OR NW LATER TONIGHT.  
 
THERE SHOULD BE A SURGE IN SW WINDS LATER SATURDAY. BUT WIND  
GUSTS SHOULD STAY BELOW 25 KT, SO NO SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES ARE  
EXPECTED. CONDITIONS IMPROVE MORE ON SUNDAY, WITH NO MAJOR  
CONCERNS LATER INTO THE WEEK.  
 
 
   
CHS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES  
 
GA...NONE.  
SC...NONE.  
MARINE...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 3 AM EDT SATURDAY FOR AMZ350.  
 
 
 
 
 
NEAR TERM...BRS/JRL  
SHORT TERM...MS  
LONG TERM...MS  
AVIATION...BRS/MS  
MARINE...JRL/MS  
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