439  
FXUS62 KGSP 151824  
AFDGSP  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC  
124 PM EST SUN DEC 15 2024  
   
SYNOPSIS
 
 
CHILLY, CLOUDY, AND RAINY WEATHER CONTINUES INTO TONIGHT BEFORE  
TAPERING OFF AROUND DAYBREAK MONDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL BE ON A  
WARMING THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF THE WORKWEEK, WITH RAIN CHANCES  
BRIEFLY RETURNING TO THE MOUNTAINS MONDAY NIGHT AND TO ALL LOCATIONS  
BY WEDNESDAY. DRIER AND COOLER CONDITIONS CAN BE EXPECTED THURSDAY  
INTO THE WEEKEND.  
 

 
   
NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/
 
 
AS OF 104 PM EST SUNDAY: TEMPS HAVE WARMED ACROSS THE AREA TO THE  
POINT WHERE ONLY ONE OR TWO SPOTS IN AVERY COUNTY NC WERE RIGHT  
AT 32F, SO WITH THAT IN MIND, WE LET THE REMAINDER OF THE WINTER  
WEATHER ADVISORY EXPIRE ON TIME. OTHERWISE, NO CHANGES FOR THE  
AFTERNOON YET. A CLASSIC COLD AIR DAMMING WEDGE WILL PERSIST THANKS  
TO A LARGE 1050MB SFC HIGH ANCHORED OVER THE ST LAWRENCE VALLEY  
AND ONGOING LIGHT PRECIP, WITH MORE MOVING IN FROM THE WEST. THAT  
WILL KEEP TEMPS DOWN ABOUT 10-15 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.  
 
THE CLASSICAL CAD SETUP WILL SLOWLY COME TO AN END, BUT LIKELY TO  
OCCUR IN THE SHORT-TERM AS THE DOME OF COLD AIR WILL BE TOUGH TO  
ERODE AND THERE'S NOT A CLEAR MECHANISM FOR EROSION THROUGH THE  
NEAR-TERM. MOST OF THE PRECIP WILL LIFT OUT OF THE AREA OVERNIGHT  
TONIGHT AS THE UPPER LOW LIFTS INTO THE NORTHEASTERN CONUS AND  
LOW-LEVEL WINDS VEER, WHILE SHORTWAVE RIDGING ALOFT BUILDS IN  
FROM THE WEST. THE SURFACE HIGH REMAINS STRONG OFFSHORE THE NEW  
ENGLAND COAST AND WILL CONTINUE TO NOSE IN A NORTHEASTERLY COMPONENT  
THROUGH DAYBREAK TUESDAY, WHILE LOW CLOUDS REMAIN SOCKED IN OVER THE  
CFWA. AS A RESULT, THE SENSIBLE WEATHER WILL DRY OUT BY THE END OF  
THE FORECAST PERIOD, BUT OVERNIGHT LOWS WILL RUN 5-10 DEGREES ABOVE  
NORMAL THANKS TO THE EXTENSIVE CLOUD COVER AND HIGHER HEIGHTS ALOFT.  
 

 
   
SHORT TERM /MONDAY THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT/
 
 
AS OF 130 AM SUN: STILL LOOKING LIKE MOISTURE FLUX WILL DIMINISH  
MONDAY SUPPORTING POPS BELOW SLIGHT-CHANCE, ALTHOUGH WARM  
UPGLIDE WILL CONTINUE BELOW 850 MB, LIKELY MAINTAINING A FAIR  
AMOUNT OF CLOUD COVER. PARENT HIGH FROM THE CAD EVENT WILL BE  
CENTERED OFFSHORE, BUT MODELS CONTINUE TO DEPICT A LOBE OF THE  
HIGH REMAINING OVER THE SOUTHEAST STATES UNDER A LOW-AMPLITUDE  
UPPER RIDGE. GIVEN THE INITIAL STRENGTH OF CAD AND MOST HI-RES  
GUIDANCE STILL DEPICTING AN INVERSION AND THE CLOUD COVER, STILL  
SKEPTICAL WE'LL SEE AS BIG A WARM-UP AS E.G. THE NBM WOULD SUGGEST.  
THAT IS TO SAY, THERE APPEARS BUST POTENTIAL ON MAX TEMPS.  
 
NO BIG CHANGES TO THE EXPECTATIONS FOR THE NEXT FRONT, WHICH  
STILL LOOKS TO CROSS THE LOWER OH/TN VALLEYS LATE MONDAY AND  
EFFECTIVELY IMPINGE ON OUR MOUNTAINS BEFORE DAYBREAK TUESDAY. STILL  
NOT EXPECTING THE FRONT TO HAVE GREAT DYNAMIC SUPPORT, WITH THE  
DRIVING CYCLONE NORTH OF THE GREAT LAKES BY THE TIME THE FRONT NEARS  
US. IT IS THUS PERHAPS NO SURPRISE THE SFC FRONT STALLS ACROSS TN  
AND VA, AND IS NOT EXPECTED TO RESULT IN AIRMASS CHANGE FOR OUR  
CWA. FURTHERMORE PRECIP PROBABLY WILL NOT HOLD TOGETHER PAST THE  
MOUNTAINS, WITH THE ONLY FORCING BEING A WEAK CONVERGENCE ZONE AND  
MOISTURE BEING EATEN UP AS WINDS TURN WESTERLY AND DOWNSLOPE. TOTAL  
QPF WITH THE FRONT IS PROGGED TO BE LESS THAN A TENTH OF AN INCH  
IN ALMOST ALL AREAS, WITH EVEN LOCATIONS NEAR THE MOUNTAIN SPINE  
UNLIKELY TO SEE EVEN A QUARTER INCH. CONFIDENCE REMAINS HIGH THAT  
TEMPS WILL BE CONSIDERABLY ABOVE FREEZING IN THE ENTIRE CWA WHEN  
PRECIP CHANCES ARRIVE SO THIS OVERALL LOOKS LIKE A LOW-IMPACT FROPA.  
THE DOWNSLOPING HOWEVER WILL ERODE ANY REMAINING VESTIGE OF CAD AND  
SHOULD PROMOTE REMARKABLE WARMING ACROSS THE AREA DURING THE DAY;  
FOR THE PIEDMONT WE STILL EXPECT UPPER 60S TO NEAR 70 FOR MAXES  
TUE AFTN.  
 
PRECIP CHANCES WILL LINGER LONGEST ALONG THE TN BORDER TUESDAY  
BEFORE TAPERING OFF ONCE AGAIN IN THE EVENING; SOME CLOUD COVER MAY  
DEVELOP EAST OF THE MOUNTAINS VIA THE CONVERGENCE ZONE. THE FRONTAL  
ZONE WILL BE REACTIVATED TUE NIGHT AHEAD OF THE NEXT TROUGH AXIS  
WHICH THEN WILL BE INVOF THE OZARKS. THE ECMWF IS MOST AGGRESSIVE  
OF OUR DETERMINISTIC MODELS IN DEPICTING THE ACTIVATION, WITH  
THE OTHER MAJOR DET MODELS BEING VIRTUALLY DRY. HOWEVER, ENSEMBLE  
PROBS ARE ENOUGH TO JUSTIFY A SLIGHT-CHANCE MENTION IN OUR SOUTH  
AND CHANCE ACROSS MOST OF WESTERN NC BY DAYBREAK WED. AGAIN,  
ALL LIQUID AS MIN TEMPS REMAIN ABOVE NORMAL.  
 

 
   
LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/
 
 
AS OF 200 AM SUN: THE REACTIVATING WARM FRONT IS SHOWN TO RETREAT  
A LITTLE NORTHWARD ON WEDNESDAY AS TROUGH PUSHES EAST OF THE  
MS RIVER AND A SFC LOW TRACKS UP THE OHIO VALLEY. MODELS HAVE  
REMAINED PRETTY CONSISTENT OVER THE PAST FEW RUNS IN DEPICTING  
THE DRIVING TROUGH HOLDING TOGETHER ACROSS THE INLAND EAST, AND  
PROVIDING ENOUGH OOMPH TO BRING THE ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT ACROSS  
THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS WEDNESDAY NIGHT. POPS RAMP UP UNTIL THE  
FRONT PASSES, SUFFICIENT FOR A HIGH CHANCE TO LOW LIKELY MENTION  
IN THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING. PWATS WILL DECLINE A BIT IN THE  
WAKE OF THE WARM FRONT BUT STILL WILL BE UNSEASONABLY HIGH. MOST  
MODELS ALSO DEPICT SMALL SBCAPE DEVELOPING DIURNALLY WITHIN THE  
CWA, AND SUCH INSTABILITY LIKELY WOULD OVERLAP WITH 30+ KT OF  
EFFECTIVE SHEAR. FLOW WILL BE UNIDIRECTIONAL AND PARALLEL TO THE  
FRONT, WHICH WILL MITIGATE ANY RESULTING SEVERE THREAT. LOCALLY  
HEAVY RAINFALL CAN'T BE RULED OUT ON ACCOUNT OF THE PWATS, BUT  
OVERALL QPF IS NOT TERRIBLY REMARKABLE WITH ENSEMBLE PROBS NOT  
INDICATIVE OF ANYTHING CLOSE TO A BROAD SCALE FLOOD THREAT. TEMPS  
ON WED WILL BE SIMILARLY WARM TO TUESDAY'S, BUT FALL BEHIND THE  
FRONT. A SMALL CHANCE OF NW FLOW SNOW EXISTS FOR THE MOUNTAINS  
EARLY THURSDAY, BUT PRECIP STILL LOOKS TO END AS RAIN EVERYWHERE  
ELSE THAT MORNING. TEMPS RETURN NEAR TO A LITTLE ABOVE NORMAL  
THURSDAY AND SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY,  
AS STRONG HIGH PRESSURE MIGRATES ACROSS THE REGION FROM THE WEST.  
 
MOST RUNS THEN DEPICT A SHORTWAVE ROUNDING THE RIDGE OVER THE  
NORTHWEST COAST WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND TAKING A CLIPPER-LIKE TRACK  
ACROSS THE CENTRAL/EASTERN CONUS, REACHING THE APPALACHIANS LATE  
FRIDAY. THE CANADIAN GDPS IS THE MOST LIKE A TRUE ALBERTA CLIPPER,  
FEATURING A COMPACT WAVE DIVING SOUTH TO NEAR OUR NORTHERN BORDER;  
THE GFS AND ECMWF SOLUTIONS HAVE A LARGER SCALE TROUGH AND SFC  
LOW BUT TAKE THE SYSTEM FARTHER NORTH SUCH THAT WE MAY NOT GET  
MUCH DYNAMIC LIFT. ANOTHER COLD FRONT APPEARS LIKELY TO TRAIL THE  
WAVE AND VIA THE INCOMING SUBARCTIC HIGH, TEMPS TREND BELOW NORMAL  
FOR THE WEEKEND. POPS ARE NO BETTER THAN 20% ANYWHERE FRIDAY AND  
FRIDAY NIGHT BUT COME AS A RESULT OF THIS WAVE AND THE MINOR NW  
FLOW SNOW EVENT DEPICTED ALONG/BEHIND THE FRONT.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /19Z SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/
 
 
AT KCLT AND ELSEWHERE: WITHOUT THE LIGHT PRECIP TO LOCK IN THE EDGES  
OF THE WEDGE, THE SOUTHERN PIEDMONT HAS STARTED TO BREAK OUT OF  
THE LOW STRATUS, THUS KCLT HAS GONE VFR. THIS MAY NOT BE MERELY A  
TEMPORARY OR BRIEF IMPROVEMENT, AS WITHOUT THE LIGHT PRECIP MOVING  
BACK IN, KCLT WILL PROBABLY BE IN AND OUT OF AN MVFR-LEVEL STRATOCU  
CEILING WHILE THE IFR LURKS WEST OF THE METRO AREA FOR THE REST  
OF THE AFTERNOON. WITH THE CEILING RESTRICTION BEING ESSENTIALLY  
A COIN FLIP, WILL OPT FOR THE VFR PREVAILING/MVFR TEMPO PLAN. ALL  
OTHER TERMINALS WILL MOSTLY BE FLIPPING BETWEEN IFR AND OCCASIONAL  
LIFR CEILING WITH A LARGER PATCH OF LIGHT PRECIP MOVING IN FROM  
THE WEST. WIND SHOULD BE MOSTLY NE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON. ONCE  
THE SUN SETS, ONGOING LIGHT UPSLOPE/UPGLIDE FLOW SHOULD BRING THE  
LOW CLOUDS BACK DOWN AGAIN TO IFR OR LIFR AT ALL TERMINALS FOR THE  
NIGHT. ONLY SLOW IMPROVEMENT IS EXPECTED ON MONDAY AS WE LACK A GOOD  
MECHANISM TO REMOVE THE CLOUDS AND THE REMNANT COOL POOL. THUS,  
ONLY KCLT GETS A REPRIEVE OF SORTS BECAUSE OF THE LONGER FORECAST  
VALID PERIOD AND BEING CLOSER TO THE WEDGE BOUNDARY.  
 
OUTLOOK: RESTRICTIONS MAY CONTINUE THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT, BUT SHOULD  
CLEAR OUT TUESDAY MORNING. AN UNSETTLED PATTERN CONTINUES THROUGH  
THE REST OF THE WEEK AS MULTIPLE STORM SYSTEMS PUSH INTO REGION  
LIKELY LEADING TO PERIODS OF ASSOCIATED RESTRICTIONS.  
 

 
   
GSP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
GA...NONE.  
NC...NONE.  
SC...NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
SYNOPSIS...AR  
NEAR TERM...CAC/PM  
SHORT TERM...WIMBERLEY  
LONG TERM...WIMBERLEY  
AVIATION...PM  
 
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