714  
FXUS63 KDTX 190317  
AFDDTX  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DETROIT/PONTIAC MI  
1117 PM EDT FRI APR 18 2025  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- ADDITIONAL SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS SOUTHEAST  
MI LATE TONIGHT AND EARLY SATURDAY.  
 
- MAINLY DRY AND MILD WEATHER THIS WEEKEND WITH THE NEXT ROUND OF  
SHOWERS AND STORMS ARRIVING SUNDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY.  
 

 
   
AVIATION
 
 
FOR THE REST OF TONIGHT, STILL MONITORING POTENTIAL FOR ANOTHER  
ROUND OF CONVECTION AS A FRONTAL BOUNDARY OVER CENTRAL LOWER RETREATS  
AS A COLD FRONT, MIGRATING SOUTHEASTWARD ACROSS SOUTHEAST MICHIGAN.  
LATEST HI-RES MODEL TRENDS CONTINUE TO ADVERTISE A LATER ARRIVAL,  
NOW AFTER 06Z WITH WANING INSTABILITY. REMOVED TS MENTION, EXCEPT  
FOR TEMPOS AT FNT AND MBS. ANOTHER WAVE LIFTING THROUGH THE OHIO  
VALLEY PRESENTS A THIRD CONVECTIVE OPPORTUNITY SATURDAY MORNING,  
MAINLY OVER THE METRO (DTW AND DET) TERMINALS, ALTHOUGH THEY WILL BE  
ON THE WESTERN FRINGE SHOULD THESE STORMS MATERIALIZE. DID NOT  
INCLUDE A MENTION WITH THE 06Z UPDATE. HIGH-END MVFR CEILINGS SETTLE  
IN EARLY SATURDAY MORNING, PERSISTING UNTIL MIDDAY SATURDAY. LOW  
PREDICTABILITY IN NOCTURNAL WIND GUSTS FOR THE SOUTHERN TAF SITES  
WHICH HAVE SPORADICALLY MIXED-DOWN WITHIN A SHALLOW NEAR-SURFACE  
LAYER. VEERING WIND DIRECTION EXPECTED WITH TIME, AND MORE SHARPLY  
IN THE WAKE OF THE FRONT.  
 
FOR DTW...DECREASING POTENTIAL FOR ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY  
EARLY SATURDAY MORNING. WINDS VEER TOWARD 290-300 DEGREES WITH  
PERIODIC GUSTS AOA 25 KNOTS.  
   
DTW THRESHOLD PROBABILITIES
 
 
* HIGH FOR CEILING 5000 FT OR LESS UNTIL SATURDAY AFTERNOON.  
 
* LOW FOR THUNDERSTORMS EARLY SATURDAY MORNING.  
 

 
   
PREV DISCUSSION
 
 
ISSUED AT 358 PM EDT FRI APR 18 2025  
 
DISCUSSION...  
 
SUBSIDENCE BEHIND THE MORNING CONVECTION AND EML INDUCED CAPPING  
BECOMING EVIDENT IN RECENT ACARS SOUNDINGS SHOULD SUPPRESS  
CONVECTION THROUGH THE REST OF THE AFTERNOON, EVEN AS SURFACE BASED  
INSTABILITY IS PROGGED TO INCREASE TO 1000-1500 J/KG BENEATH THE  
INVERSION. LOW PRESSURE OVER NORTHERN IL LIFTS NORTHEAST ACROSS LAKE  
MICHIGAN INTO NORTHWEST AND MID MI THIS EVENING, WITH CONVECTION  
ALREADY STARTING TO PERCOLATE NEAR THE LOW CENTER NEAR ROCKFORD. AS  
A WEAK SHORTWAVE AND RELATIVELY NEBULOUS FRONTAL FORCING LIFT  
NORTHEAST FROM THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY, THIS CONVECTION IS SHOWN IN  
MUCH OF THE HI-RES GUIDANCE TO TRACK NORTHEAST ALONG THE INSTABILITY  
GRADIENT TOWARD THE SAGINAW VALLEY AND THUMB THIS EVENING. THIS  
WINDOW FROM ROUGHLY 22Z TO 02Z APPEARS TO BE THE MOST FAVORABLE  
CHANCE FOR ANY SEVERE WEATHER BEFORE INSTABILITY BEGINS TO WANE  
THROUGH TONIGHT. ISOLATED STORMS MAY BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LARGE  
HAIL AND DAMAGING WIND GUSTS AS THE PRIMARY THREATS. CONFIDENCE IN  
SEVERE WEATHER OCCURRING REMAINS LOW AND SPC CONTINUES TO MAINTAIN  
THE MARGINAL RISK (1 OUT OF 5) FOR THE AREA.  
 
GIVEN THE POSITIVE TILT TO THE DRIVING UPPER TROUGH AND DEEP LAYER  
SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW PARALLEL TO THE BOUNDARY, FORWARD SPEED OF THE  
COLD FRONT WILL BE SLOW OVERNIGHT. THIS SUSTAINS SCATTERED SHOWERS  
AND THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH THE NIGHT INTO THE PRE-DAWN HOURS. LAPSE  
RATES WEAKEN CONSIDERABLY AS DEEPER LAYER MOISTURE ARRIVES AND  
SEVERE WEATHER BECOMES INCREASINGLY UNLIKELY LATER IN THE NIGHT. THE  
ENVIRONMENT WILL SUPPORT POCKETS OF HEAVY DOWNPOURS WITH PWAT  
NEARING 1.50", DEEP WARM CLOUD LAYER, AND POTENTIAL FOR BACKBUILDING  
STORMS GIVEN WEAK CORFIDI UPSHEAR VECTORS. THE LIMITING FACTOR  
APPEARS TO BE RELATIVELY WEAK FORCING ALONG THE FRONT WHICH KEEPS  
CONVECTIVE COVERAGE ON THE LOWER END LOCALLY. THE SHOWERS AND STORMS  
SHOULD DEPART MOST OF THE AREA BY AROUND SUNRISE, BUT THE MONROE AND  
DOWNRIVER AREAS MAY SEE ADDITIONAL LIGHT SHOWERS AS REMNANT LOWER  
OHIO VALLEY LLJ FORCING CREEPS IN AT TIMES THROUGH THE MORNING.  
OTHERWISE, DRYING WESTERLY FLOW THROUGH THE DAY SATURDAY OFFERS DRY  
AND SEASONABLE CONDITIONS WITH HIGHS IN THE MID 50S TO MID 60S.  
 
SHORTWAVE RIDGING AMPLIFIES OVERHEAD ON SUNDAY IN BETWEEN SYSTEMS,  
PROMOTING HIGH PRESSURE WITH LIGHT WIND AND COOL WEATHER. THERE WILL  
BE A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR SHOWERS AS ELEVATED WARM ADVECTION GRAZES THE  
WESTERN HALF OF THE STATE, OTHERWISE MAINLY DRY CONDITIONS PREVAIL.  
THE NEXT MID-LEVEL WAVE EJECTS FROM THE SOUTHERN PLAINS TOWARD THE  
WESTERN GREAT LAKES ON MONDAY, NEARING OCCLUSION AS IT PASSES OVER  
LAKE MICHIGAN. NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL BE LIKELY THROUGH  
THE DAY AS THIS SYSTEM PASSES THROUGH. THERE IS UNCERTAINTY WHERE  
THE TRIPLE POINT WILL SET UP AND TRACK, BUT IF THE WARM SECTOR  
CREEPS IN SOME STRONGER STORMS WOULD BE POSSIBLE BEFORE THE COLD  
FRONT MOVES THROUGH BY THE EVENING. PLACEMENT OF THE WARM SECTOR  
ALSO BRINGS HIGHER UNCERTAINTY TO THE HIGH TEMPERATURE FORECAST  
WHICH MAY RANGE FROM THE LOWER 60S TO THE LOWER 70S. AFTER THIS  
SYSTEM DEPARTS, ZONAL FLOW ALOFT SETS UP THROUGH MIDWEEK WITH THE  
JET STREAM SLOWLY MIGRATING NORTHWARD ACROSS THE GREAT LAKES.  
OVERALL MAINLY DRY AND MILD CONDITIONS ARE FAVORED BUT THERE WILL BE  
LOW-END CHANCES FOR RAIN AT TIMES AS SMALLER SCALE WAVES RIPPLE  
ACROSS THE NORTHERN LAKES.  
 
MARINE...  
 
A WARMER AND DRIER AIRMASS SETTLES IN FOR THE EARLY EVENING PERIOD  
WHILE INCREASING STABILITY BEGINS TO LIMIT WIND GUST POTENTIAL.  
GIVEN THAT WIND GUSTS HAVE GENERALLY UNDERPERFORMED TODAY AND WAVE  
HEIGHTS HAVE SUBSIDED BELOW 5 FEET, ALL SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES WILL  
END AT 4 PM. ADDITIONAL CLUSTERS OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE  
POSSIBLE TONIGHT, ESPECIALLY NORTH OF THE WARM FRONT WHICH HAS  
STALLED JUST NORTH OF SAGINAW BAY. THESE STORMS ARE LIKELY TO REMAIN  
ELEVATED, WHICH LIMITS IMPACTS TO LARGE HAIL AND HEAVY RAINFALL.  
ADDITIONAL SHOWERS AND STORMS MAY FILL IN AHEAD OF A SLOW-MOVING  
FRONTAL ZONE OVERNIGHT, BEFORE THIS FRONT SETTLES SOUTH OF THE OHIO  
BORDER SATURDAY MORNING. NORTHWEST FLOW PREVAILS IN THE POST-FRONT  
REGIME, WITH BENIGN MARINE CONDITIONS EXPECTED THROUGH THE BETTER  
PART OF THE WEEKEND. THE NEXT LOW PRESSURE TO BRING RAIN CHANCES AND  
INCREASED WINDS/WAVES ARRIVES MONDAY.  
 

 
   
DTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
MI...NONE.  
LAKE HURON...NONE.  
LAKE ST CLAIR...NONE.  
MICHIGAN WATERS OF LAKE ERIE...NONE.  

 
 

 
 
AVIATION.....KGK  
DISCUSSION...TF  
MARINE.......MV  
 
YOU CAN OBTAIN YOUR LATEST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECASTS ONLINE  
AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/DETROIT.  
 
CLICK HERE TO GO TO PREVIOUS BULLETINS.

The Nexlab MI Page Main Text Page