260  
AXPZ20 KNHC 022021  
TWDEP  
 
TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION  
NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL  
2205 UTC MON FEB 2 2026  
 
TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION FOR THE EASTERN PACIFIC OCEAN FROM  
03.4S TO 30N, EAST OF 120W INCLUDING THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA, AND  
FROM THE EQUATOR TO 30N, BETWEEN 120W AND 140W. THE FOLLOWING  
INFORMATION IS BASED ON SATELLITE IMAGERY, WEATHER OBSERVATIONS,  
RADAR, AND METEOROLOGICAL ANALYSIS.  
 
BASED ON 1800 UTC SURFACE ANALYSIS AND SATELLITE IMAGERY THROUGH  
2000 UTC.  
   
..SPECIAL FEATURES
 
 
GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC GALE WARNING: THE PRESSURE GRADIENT BETWEEN  
HIGH PRESSURE ACROSS NORTH OF THE AREA AND THE EASTERN NORTH  
PACIFIC MONSOON TROUGH IS SUPPORTING STRONG GALE-FORCE WINDS IN  
THE TEHUANTEPEC REGION. A RECENT ASCAT SCATTEROMETER PASS SHOWED  
40-45 KT WIND BARBS. VERY ROUGH SEAS UP TO 16 FT ARE ALSO  
PRESENT. A RECENT SHIP OBSERVATION WELL DOWNWIND OF THE GULF NEAR  
12N95W REPORTED SEAS NEAR 14 FT. WINDS WILL VERY GRADUALLY  
DIMINISH, FALLING BELOW GALE-FORCE BY TUE MORNING. ANOTHER GALE  
FORCE GAP WIND EVENT IS POSSIBLE IN TEHUANTEPEC STARTING THE  
MIDDLE OF THE WEEK INTO NEXT WEEKEND.  
 
GULF OF PAPAGAYO GALE WARNING: NEAR-GALE TO GALE-FORCE NE TO E  
GAP WINDS IN THE GULF OF PAPAGAYO WILL PREVAIL THROUGH TUE  
MORNING AS AN ARCTIC HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE EASTERN UNITED STATES  
HELPS MAINTAIN A TIGHT PRESSURE GRADIENT. RECENT ASCAT  
SCATTEROMETER DATA SHOWED NUMEROUS WIND BARBS RIGHT AROUND GALE-  
FORCE. SEAS WILL PEAK NEAR 12 FT WITH THESE WINDS. FRESH TO  
STRONG WINDS WILL THEN PULSE THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE  
FORECAST PERIOD.  
 
SIGNIFICANT W-NW SWELL EVENT: A POTENT WEATHER SYSTEM WILL BRING  
GALE-FORCE WINDS JUST NW OF 30N140W TONIGHT THROUGH TUE. ROUGH  
SEAS ARE ALREADY SPREADING SOUTHEAST OF 30N140W, AND SEAS WILL  
BUILD TO 12 FT OR GREATER NEAR 30N140W BY EARLY TUE. SEAS OF 12  
FT OR GREATER WILL THEN COVER THE WATERS WEST OF A LINE FROM  
30N135W TO 26N140W BY EARLY WED, THEN WEST OF A LINE FROM 30N131W  
TO 19N140W BY EARLY THU, AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 30N123W TO  
15N133W BY EARLY FRI. SEAS ARE FORECAST TO PEAK AROUND 20 FT NEAR  
30N140W WED NIGHT INTO EARLY THU. SEAS WILL THEN GRADUALLY  
SUBSIDE TO JUST LESS THAN 12 FT BY EARLY SAT, WHILE A LARGE  
SURROUND AREA OF 8 FT OR GREATER COVERS MUCH OF THE WATERS WEST  
OF 110W BY THEN.  
 
PLEASE READ THE LATEST HIGH SEAS FORECAST ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL  
HURRICANE CENTER AT  
HTTPS://WWW.NHC.NOAA.GOV/TEXT/MIAHSFEP2.SHTML FOR MORE DETAILS.  
   
..INTERTROPICAL CONVERGENCE ZONE/MONSOON TROUGH
 
 
THE MONSOON TROUGH EXTENDS FROM 07N77.5W TO 08N84W TO 03N97W TO  
04N105W. THE ITCZ EXTENDS FROM 04N105W TO 08N125W TO BEYOND  
08N140W. SCATTERED MODERATE CONVECTION IS NOTED FROM 04N TO 06N  
BETWEEN 90W AND 99W, FROM 07N TO 11N BETWEEN 128W AND 137W, AND  
FROM 11N TO 17N BETWEEN 124W AND 131W.  
   
..OFFSHORE WATERS WITHIN 250 NM OF MEXICO
 
 
A GALE WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC. PLEASE  
SEE THE SPECIAL FEATURES SECTION ABOVE FOR MORE DETAILS.  
 
ASIDE FROM THE GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC, WINDS ARE MODERATE OR WEAKER  
WITH MODERATE SEAS, EXCEPT SLIGHT IN THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA, AND  
EXCEPT FOR ROUGH SEAS MOVING INTO THE WATERS OFF BAJA CALIFORNIA  
NORTE.  
 
FOR THE FORECAST ASIDE FROM THE GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC, A SET OF NW  
SWELL WILL CONTINUE TO IMPACT THE WATERS WEST OF THE BAJA  
CALIFORNIA PENINSULA THROUGH TUE NIGHT. ANOTHER SET OF LARGE NW  
SWELL WILL ENTER THE WATERS OFF BAJA CALIFORNIA NORTE THE END OF  
THE WEEK, SPREADING ACROSS THE WATERS W OF 105W DURING THE  
UPCOMING WEEKEND.  
 
....OFFSHORE WATERS WITHIN 250 NM OF CENTRAL AMERICA, COLOMBIA,  
AND WITHIN 750 NM OF ECUADOR...  
 
A GALE WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE GULF OF PAPAGAYO. PLEASE SEE  
THE SPECIAL FEATURES SECTION ABOVE FOR MORE DETAILS.  
 
ASIDE FROM THE GULF OF PAPAGAYO, FRESH TO STRONG WINDS PREVAIL  
IN THE GULF OF PANAMA AND ELSEWHERE NEAR THE AZUERO PENINSULA  
WITH LOCALLY ROUGH SEAS POSSIBLE WITH THOSE WINDS. SIMILAR WINDS  
ARE FOUND NEAR AND DOWNWIND OF THE GULF OF FONSECA AS CONFIRMED  
BY RECENT ASCAT DATA. ROUGH SEAS ARE WELL OFFSHORE GUATEMALA AND  
WESTERN EL SALVADOR DUE TO A PERSISTENT AND STRONG GALE-FORCE GAP  
WIND EVENT IN THE GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC. OTHERWISE, GENTLE TO  
MODERATE WINDS AND MODERATE SEAS PREVAIL.  
 
FOR THE FORECAST, ASIDE FROM THE GULF OF PAPAGAYO, A GALE-FORCE  
GAP WIND EVENT OVER THE GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC WILL PRODUCE ROUGH TO  
VERY ROUGH SEAS OVER THE WESTERN GUATEMALA AND EL SALVADOR  
WATERS THROUGH THE EARLY PART OF THE WEEK, AND THEN AGAIN LATE  
THIS WEEK WITH ANOTHER GAP WIND EVENT IN THE GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC.  
SWELL GENERATED FROM THE GULF OF PAPAGAYO GAP WIND EVENT WILL  
MERGE WITH THIS AREA TO MAINTAIN ROUGH AND CONFUSED SEAS EARLY  
THIS WEEK. FRESH TO STRONG NORTHERLY GAP WINDS ALONG WITH ROUGH  
SEAS WILL IMPACT THE GULF OF PANAMA THROUGH WED MORNING, WITH  
SIMILAR CONDITIONS IN THE GULF OF FONSECA. MODERATE TO FRESH  
WINDS WILL THEN PULSE IN THE GULF OF PANAMA FOR THE REMAINDER OF  
THE WEEK.  
   
..REMAINDER OF THE AREA
 
 
A SIGNIFICANT W-NW SWELL EVENT IS FORECAST FOR THE NW AND  
NORTHERN WATERS. PLEASE SEE THE SPECIAL FEATURES SECTION ABOVE  
FOR MORE DETAILS.  
 
A LEADING AND SEPARATE SET OF LARGE NW SWELL, WITH SEAS IN THE 8  
TO 11 FT RANGE PREVAILS OVER THE WATERS WEST OF A LINE FROM  
30N117W TO 10N130W TO 04N140W. ROUGH SEAS GENERATED FROM A  
STRONG GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC GALE-FORCE GAP WIND EVENT AND A GALE-  
FORCE GULF OF PAPAGAYO GAP WIND EVENT ARE OVER THE DISCUSSION  
WATERS NORTH OF 02N BETWEEN 88W AND 108W. ELSEWHERE, SURFACE  
RIDGING PREVAILS ACROSS THE WATERS NORTH OF 20N AND WEST OF 110W.  
THE PRESSURE GRADIENT BETWEEN THE RIDGE AND LOWER PRESSURE IN  
THE VICINITY OF THE ITCZ IS SUPPORTING MODERATE TO LOCALLY FRESH  
TRADES NORTH OF THE ITCZ TO NEAR 20N AND WEST OF ABOUT 120W.  
ELSEWHERE, MODERATE WINDS, AND MODERATE SEAS IN MIXED SWELL,  
PREVAIL, EXCEPT ARRIVING FRESH TO STRONG SOUTHERLY WINDS  
SPREADING INTO THE WATERS JUST SOUTHEAST OF 30N140W.  
 
FOR THE FORECAST, ASIDE FROM THE SIGNIFICANT W-NW SWELL EVENT  
DESCRIBED IN THE SPECIAL FEATURES, SEAS GREATER THAN 8 FT WITH A  
SEPARATE AND LEADING SET OF NW SWELL WILL SPREAD SE THROUGH THE  
EARLY PART OF THIS WEEK BEFORE STARTING TO SUBSIDE BELOW 8 FT BY  
MID-WEEK. FRESH TO STRONG SOUTHERLY WINDS WILL IMPACT THE NW  
WATERS MUCH OF THIS WEEK WITH A GALE-FORCE SYSTEM JUST TO THE NW  
OF 30N140W. HIGH PRESSURE IS FORECAST TO BUILD IN THE WAKE OF  
THAT SYSTEM, WITH FRESH TO STRONG TRADES POSSIBLE FROM 07N TO 20N  
AND WEST OF 120W DURING THE UPCOMING WEEKEND. MEANWHILE, CONFUSED  
SEAS GENERATED BY ONGOING GULF OF TEHUANTEPEC AND GULF OF  
PAPAGAYO GALES WILL CONTINUE TO IMPACT THE OPEN WATERS DOWNWIND  
OF THOSE GULFS INTO MID-WEEK BEFORE SUBSIDING. SIMILAR SEAS ARE  
POSSIBLE OVER GENERALLY THE SAME OPEN WATERS LATE IN THE WEEK AND  
INTO NEXT WEEKEND, WITH THE NEXT POSSIBLE GALE EVENT IN THE GULF  
OF TEHUANTEPEC.  
 

 
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