528  
FXUS61 KCLE 252022  
AFDCLE  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLEVELAND OH  
322 PM EST WED FEB 25 2026  
   
WHAT HAS CHANGED  
 
THE FORECAST CONTINUES TO TREND WARMER FOR THIS FRIDAY, WHEN  
ABOVE-NORMAL HIGHS ARE EXPECTED REGION-WIDE. NO OTHER CHANGES TO  
NOTE.  
 
 
   
KEY MESSAGES  
 
1.) MAINLY DRY WEATHER AND AN OVERALL MODERATION IN AIR  
TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED THROUGH THIS SATURDAY.  
 
2.) INCLEMENT WEATHER SHOULD RETURN THIS SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH  
WEDNESDAY. PRECIPITATION TYPES AND/OR AMOUNTS REMAIN UNCERTAIN,  
ESPECIALLY SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY.  
 
 
   
DISCUSSION  
 
1.) A HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE AT THE SURFACE AND ALOFT CONTINUES TO  
BUILD FROM THE UPPER MIDWEST AND VICINITY THROUGH TONIGHT,  
CRESTS E'WARD ACROSS OUR REGION ON THURSDAY, AND BEGINS TO EXIT  
E'WARD ON FRIDAY. PRIMARILY DRY WEATHER IS EXPECTED AS  
STABILIZING SUBSIDENCE ACCOMPANIES THE RIDGE. NET LOW-LEVEL CAA  
AHEAD OF THE SURFACE RIDGE AXIS, A BRIEF UPTICK IN LOW-LEVEL  
MOISTURE, ALBEIT LIMITED, AND A W'ERLY MEAN LOW-LEVEL FLOW  
SHOULD ALLOW PERIODIC AND LIGHT LAKE-EFFECT SNOW (LES) SHOWERS  
TO DEVELOP OVER LAKE ERIE AND IMPACT THE PRIMARY SNOWBELT OF NE  
OH AND NW PA THIS EVENING THROUGH THE FIRST COUPLE HOURS OF  
THURSDAY MORNING. THIS LIGHT LES IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE FRESH  
SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF LESS THAN 1". LOW TEMPERATURES SHOULD  
REACH MAINLY THE MID TEENS TO LOWER 20'S AROUND DAYBREAK  
THURSDAY.  
 
NET LOW-LEVEL WAA DEVELOPS ACROSS OUR CWA ON THURSDAY AND THEN  
PERSISTS THROUGH FRIDAY AS OUR REGION BECOMES LOCATED ALONG THE  
WESTERN SIDE OF THE RIDGE AXIS AT THE SURFACE AND ALOFT. LATE  
AFTERNOON HIGHS SHOULD REACH THE MID 30'S TO LOWER 40'S ROUGHLY  
ALONG AND WEST OF I-77, WHERE LOW-LEVEL WAA IS EXPECTED TO  
DEVELOP SOONER. FARTHER EAST, HIGHS SHOULD REACH THE UPPER 20'S  
TO MID 30'S. AFTER LOWS IN THE UPPER TEENS TO UPPER 20'S AROUND  
DAYBREAK FRIDAY, LATE AFTERNOON HIGHS SHOULD REACH THE UPPER  
40'S TO MID 50'S AS ABUNDANT SUNSHINE IS COMPLEMENTED BY  
SOMEWHAT BREEZY S'ERLY TO SW'ERLY SURFACE WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH  
THE AFOREMENTIONED WAA. FOR CONTEXT, NORMAL HIGHS ARE NEAR 40F  
AND NORMAL LOWS ARE NEAR 25F THIS TIME OF YEAR IN OUR CWA.  
 
DURING FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY, THE RIDGE CONTINUES TO  
EXIT E'WARD AS CYCLONIC W'ERLY FLOW ALOFT BECOMES ESTABLISHED  
OVER OUR REGION. IN ADDITION, A WEAK/MOISTURE-STARVED COLD FRONT  
SHOULD SWEEP E'WARD THROUGH OUR REGION SATURDAY MORNING THROUGH  
EARLY AFTERNOON. BEHIND THE FRONT, A WEAK SURFACE RIDGE SHOULD  
NOSE INTO OUR REGION FROM THE UPPER MIDWEST AND VICINITY. THUS,  
DRY WEATHER SHOULD PERSIST. OVERNIGHT LOWS SHOULD REACH THE  
30'S FRIDAY NIGHT. SATURDAY'S LATE AFTERNOON HIGHS SHOULD REACH  
THE 40'S TO LOWER 50'S AMIDST PEEKS OF SUNSHINE AND VERY WEAK  
LOW-LEVEL CAA BEHIND THE FRONT.  
 
2.) AT THIS POINT, IT APPEARS CYCLONIC W'ERLY FLOW ALOFT SHOULD  
PERSIST OVER OUR REGION THIS SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH NEXT WEEK  
TUESDAY. AT THE SURFACE AND ALOFT, THE POLAR FRONT SHOULD WAVER  
IN/NEAR THE GREAT LAKES REGION AND UPPER OH VALLEY AS MULTIPLE  
MID-LATITUDE CYCLONES DEVELOP/EVOLVE ALONG THE FRONT. PERIODS  
OF PRECIP ARE EXPECTED ALONG THE FRONT AND AHEAD OF SHORTWAVE  
TROUGH AXES EMBEDDED IN THE FLOW ALOFT. MAINLY COLDER-THAN-  
NORMAL TEMPERATURES SHOULD IMPACT OUR REGION SATURDAY NIGHT  
THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT. SNOW SHOULD BE THE PREDOMINANT PRECIP  
TYPE DURING THAT TIME PERIOD. ON TUESDAY, A WARM FRONT MAY SWEEP  
GENERALLY N'WARD THROUGH OUR REGION AND ALLOW FOR NEAR-NORMAL  
HIGH AND LOW TEMPERATURES ON THAT DAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THUS,  
PRIMARILY RAIN AND/OR SNOW SHOULD OCCUR DURING THAT TIME FRAME.  
STAY TUNED FOR FORECAST UPDATES, INCLUDING REFINEMENTS TO  
FORECAST PRECIP TYPES AND AMOUNTS.  
 
 
   
AVIATION /18Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY/  
 
VFR IS EXPECTED THROUGH THE TAF CYCLE AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS  
ACROSS THE REGION. LINGERING MVFR IN FAR EASTERN OHIO AND  
WESTERN PA WILL DIMINISH OVER THE NEXT HOUR. W WINDS OF 10-20  
KNOTS THIS AFTERNOON WILL GUST TO 20-30 KNOTS AT TIMES WHILE  
GRADUALLY TURNING NW BEHIND A COLD FRONT. NW WINDS WILL DIMINISH  
THIS EVENING AND BECOME LIGHT AND VARIABLE OVERNIGHT BEFORE  
INCREASING TO 5-10 KNOTS BY LATE THURSDAY MORNING.  
 
OUTLOOK...NON-VFR POSSIBLE AS SNOW MOVES SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE  
AREA SATURDAY NIGHT.  
 
 
   
MARINE  
 
QUIET MARINE CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT AS HIGH  
PRESSURE BUILDS OVER THE SOUTHERN GREAT LAKES REGION. SW WINDS WILL  
INCREASE TO 10-15 KNOTS FRIDAY AND 15-25 KNOTS FRIDAY NIGHT AHEAD OF  
A COLD FRONT. WINDS WILL TURN NW AND DECREASE TO 5-10 KNOTS BEHIND  
THE FRONT SATURDAY BEFORE TURNING N AT 10-15 KNOTS SATURDAY NIGHT  
AND SUNDAY THEN NE AT 10-15 KNOTS BY MONDAY.  
 
THE VARIABLE WIND SPEEDS AND DIRECTIONS WILL CONTINUE TO SHIFT  
AROUND THE ICE FIELDS THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK, AND MILD TEMPERATURES  
THIS WEEKEND WILL LEAD TO FURTHER DECAY OF THE ICE.  
 
 
   
CLE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES  
 
OH...NONE.  
PA...NONE.  
MARINE...NONE.  
 
 
 
 
 
DISCUSSION...JASZKA  
AVIATION...GARUCKAS  
MARINE...GARUCKAS  
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