495  
FXUS62 KILM 031712  
AFDILM  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON NC  
112 PM EDT SUN MAY 3 2026  
   
WHAT HAS CHANGED
 
 
18Z AVIATION DISCUSSION UPDATED.  
 

 
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
1) ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES EXPECTED TUESDAY THRU THURSDAY  
FOLLOWED BY SCATTERED CONVECTION ASSOCIATED WITH THE NEXT COLD  
FRONTAL PASSAGE LATE THURSDAY. TEMPS WILL DROP BACK TO NEAR  
NORMAL FRIDAY INTO NEXT WEEKEND.  
 

 
   
DISCUSSION
 
 
KEY MESSAGE 1: ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES EXPECTED TUESDAY THRU  
THURSDAY FOLLOWED BY SCATTERED CONVECTION ASSOCIATED WITH THE  
NEXT COLD FRONTAL PASSAGE LATE THURSDAY. TEMPS WILL DROP BACK  
TO NEAR NORMAL FRIDAY INTO NEXT WEEKEND.  
 
SFC HIGH PRESSURE SLIDES FARTHER OFFSHORE AND EAST OF THE  
CAROLINAS TUE THRU THU BUT CONTINUES TO RIDGE BACK TO SOUTHERN  
SC. THIS SETUP WILL RESULT IN SW WINDS THRU THE PERIOD. FOLLOWED  
BY A NICE WARMUP BACK TO ABOVE NORMAL WITH SUMMER LIKE TEMPS  
ESPECIALLY WED AND THU WHERE MID TO UPPER 80S AWAY FROM THE  
BEACHES WILL BE COMMON. WITH THE SUN NOW HIER IN THE SKY GIVEN  
SUMMER SOLSTICE ROUGHLY 50 DAYS AWAY, DID ADD A FEW DEGREES TO  
THE HIGHS FOR MON THRU THU, ESPECIALLY WITH FLOW ALOFT GENERALLY  
WESTERLY. A MID-LEVEL S/W TROF DROPPING OUT OF CANADA TO THE  
LOWER TO MID MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEY WED, WILL DRIVE TO THE  
EAST AND AID IN PUSHING A SFC COLD FRONT ACROSS THE ILM CWA  
AND OFF THE COAST BY LATE THU. AHEAD OF IT WILL SEE A MODEST  
CHANCE FOR CONVECTION ESPECIALLY DURING THE MIDDAY THRU EARLY  
EVENING TIME SLOT WHICH WILL AID CONVECTION DEVELOPMENT.  
INDIVIDUAL TSTORMS HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO DEPOSIT A DECENT  
AMOUNT OF RAINFALL, UNFORTUNATELY IN A MORE LOCALIZED ARENA AS  
OPPOSED TO THE PCPN EVENT THIS PAST SUNDAY WHERE IT WAS MORE  
WIDESPREAD.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /18Z SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/
 
 
EXPECT VFR CONDITIONS THROUGH THE VALID TAF PERIOD WITH W-NW WINDS  
OF 10 KT OR LESS BECOMING MORE WESTERLY BY EVENING. WINDS MAY  
BECOME LIGHT AND VARIABLE OVERNIGHT BEFORE BECOMING LIGHT S TO SW  
AFTER SUNRISE MONDAY.  
 
EXTENDED FORECAST... PREDOMINANTLY VFR THROUGH WEDNESDAY. AN  
APPROACHING COLD FRONT ON THURSDAY MAY PRODUCE EARLY-MORNING  
STRATUS ALONG WITH TRANSIENT RESTRICTIONS IN SHOWERS OR  
THUNDERSTORMS DURING THE DAY. VFR SHOULD RETURN FOR FRIDAY.  
 

 
   
MARINE
 
 
THROUGH TONIGHT... AS LOW PRESSURE PULLS AWAY TO THE NORTHEAST,  
NORTHERLY WINDS WILL SUBSIDE THROUGH TODAY AND BACK THIS  
AFTERNOON AS HIGH PRESSURE MOVES OVER THE WATERS, WITH SPEEDS  
FALLING TO AROUND 5-10 KTS BY LATE AFTERNOON. ELEVATED SEAS IN  
THE 2-5 FT RANGE IN THE 0-20NMI ZONES AND 4-7 FT IN THE  
20-60NMI ZONES WILL GRADUALLY SUBSIDE THROUGH TONIGHT TO 1-2 FT  
IN THE COASTAL WATERS AND 2-3 FT IN THE 20-60NMI WATERS. THE  
PRIMARY CONTRIBUTOR TO THE WAVE SPECTRUM WILL BE NORTHEASTERLY  
SWELLS WITH A PERIOD AROUND 7-8 SEC WHILE NORTHERLY WIND WAVES  
ALSO CONTRIBUTE.  
 
MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT...SFC HIGH PRESSURE CENTERED  
JUST OFF THE CAROLINA COASTS MONDAY, WILL SLIDE WELL OFFSHORE  
AND EAST FROM THE CAROLINAS TUE THRU THU, BUT AT THE SAME TIME,  
RIDGING BACK TO THE WSW AND ONSHORE BETWEEN CAPE ROMAIN AND THE  
MOUTH OF THE SAVANNAH RIVER. THIS POSITIONING WILL INITIALLY  
HAVE WINDS SOUTHERLY MON, THEN FROM THE SSW-SW MON NIGHT THRU  
LATE THU. WINDS WILL INCREASE TO AND ABOVE SCA THRESHOLDS THU  
WITH SPORADIC GALE FORCE GUSTS ACROSS THE OFFSHORE WATERS,  
AHEAD OF THE APPROACHING COLD FRONT DUE TO THE TIGHTENING SFC  
PG. THE COLD FRONT TO MOVE OFF THE MAINLAND AND ACROSS THE  
COASTAL AND OFFSHORE WATERS THU EVENING/NIGHT WITH POST FRONTAL  
GUSTY NW TO N WINDS, LIKELY CONTINUING THE SCA THREAT AND  
POSSIBLE GALE GUSTS OFFSHORE FOR A SHORT PERIOD. SEAS ACROSS  
THE COASTAL WATERS GENERALLY 1 TO 3 FT MON INTO TUE, INCREASING  
TO 2 TO 5 FT BY LATER WED AND 3 TO 6 FT THU. FOR THE OFFSHORE  
WATERS, GENERALLY ADD 1 TO POSSIBLY 2 FT ESPECIALLY WED THRU  
THU. SEAS GENERALLY GOVERNED BY SHORT PERIOD WAVES THIS PERIOD  
EXCEPT MON INTO TUE WHERE AN UNDERLYING SMALL E-ESE LONG PERIOD  
SWELL TO PERSIST.  
 

 
   
ILM WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
NC...NONE.  
SC...NONE.  
MARINE...NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
WHAT HAS CHANGED...ILM  
KEY MESSAGES...DCH  
DISCUSSION...DCH  
AVIATION...31  
MARINE...DCH/ABW  
 
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