872  
AXNT20 KNHC 162105  
TWDAT  
 
TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION  
NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL  
0015 UTC TUE MAR 17 2026  
 
TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION FOR NORTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA  
GULF OF AMERICA, CARIBBEAN SEA, NORTHERN SECTIONS OF SOUTH  
AMERICA, AND ATLANTIC OCEAN TO THE AFRICAN COAST FROM THE  
EQUATOR TO 31N. THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IS BASED ON SATELLITE  
IMAGERY, WEATHER OBSERVATIONS, RADAR AND METEOROLOGICAL ANALYSIS.  
 
BASED ON 1800 UTC SURFACE ANALYSIS AND SATELLITE IMAGERY THROUGH  
2100 UTC.  
   
..SPECIAL FEATURES  
 
GULF OF AMERICA STORM WARNING: A STRONG COLD FRONT EXTENDS FROM  
THE FLORIDA BIG BEND AREA TO SOUTH OF VERACRUZ, MEXICO. RECENT  
SCATTEROMETER DATA ALONG WITH BUOY AND LAND-BASED OBSERVATIONS  
ARE SHOWING GALE FORCE WINDS ACROSS MUCH OF THE NORTHERN AND  
WESTERN GULF FOLLOWING THE FRONT. A RECENT REPORT FROM VERACRUZ,  
MEXICO SHOWED SUSTAINED 35 KT WINDS WITH GUSTS TO 50 KT AS THE  
FRONT MOVED THROUGH. RECENT BUOY AND ALTIMETER DATA INDICATE  
ROUGH TO VERY ROUGH SEAS FOLLOWING THE FRONT. SEAS WILL PEAK  
BETWEEN 15 AND 18 FT UNDER THE STRONGEST WINDS. BOTH WINDS AND  
SEAS SHOULD GRADUALLY SUBSIDE FROM NORTH TO SOUTH STARTING THIS  
EVENING.  
 
PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST HIGH SEAS AND OFFSHORE WATERS FORECASTS  
ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER AT WEBSITES  
HTTPS://WWW.NHC.NOAA.GOV/TEXT/MIAHSFAT2.SHTML AND  
HTTPS://WWW.NHC.NOAA.GOV/MARINE/OFFSHORES.PHP FOR MORE DETAILS.  
   
..MONSOON TROUGH/ITCZ  
 
THE MONSOON TROUGH ENTERS THE ATLANTIC ALONG THE GUINEA COAST  
NEAR 10N14W TO 03N20W. AN ITCZ CONTINUES FROM 03N20W ACROSS  
02N33W TO THE COAST OF BRAZIL NEAR 02S45W. SCATTERED MODERATE  
CONVECTION IS NOTED FROM 00N TO 02N BETWEEN 22W AD 27W.  
   
..GULF OF AMERICA  
 
PLEASE READ THE SPECIAL FEATURES SECTION ABOVE FOR INFORMATION ON  
A STORM WARNING.  
 
OUTSIDE OF THE WINDS AND SEAS FOLLOWING THE FRONT AS DESCRIBED  
ABOVE IN THE SPECIAL FEATURES SECTION, GENTLE TO MODERATE SW  
WINDS AND 3-5 SEAS ARE NOTED AHEAD OF THE FRONT. NUMEROUS  
MODERATE TO STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ARE ACTIVE AHEAD OF THE FRONT,  
NORTH OF 25N, MOVING INTO THE EASTERN GULF.  
 
FOR THE FORECAST, THE FRONT WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE SOUTHEASTWARD, AND  
REACH FROM THE FLORIDA STRAITS TO THE YUCATAN PENINSULA BY EARLY  
TUE MORNING. WIDESPREAD NEAR GALE-FORCE TO GALE-FORCE N WINDS AND  
ROUGH SEAS ARE OCCURRING BEHIND THE FRONT. THESE WINDS WILL  
CONTINUE TO PEAK AT GALE-FORCE OFF THE NW AND W GULF LATER THIS  
AFTERNOON AND THROUGH THE EVENING. IN ADDITION, WINDS NEAR  
VERACRUZ WILL REACH STORM FORCE FOR A BRIEF PERIOD. SEAS WILL  
BUILD TO VERY ROUGH IN THE AREA OF THESE WINDS. AS THE FRONT MOVES  
FARTHER SOUTHEASTWARD AWAY FROM THE GULF LATE TONIGHT THROUGH  
TUE, CONDITIONS WILL GRADUALLY IMPROVE FROM NORTH TO SOUTH. IN THE  
WAKE OF THE FRONT, HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD ACROSS THE REGION AND  
PREVAIL THROUGH THE REST OF THE FORECAST PERIOD.  
   
..CARIBBEAN SEA  
 
RECENT SCATTEROMETER SATELLITE DATA CONFIRMED FRESH TO STRONG E  
WINDS ACROSS THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN, WHERE ASSOCIATED COMBINED  
SEAS ARE 7-10 FT. THESE WINDS ARE SUPPORTED BY STRONG HIGH  
PRESSURE OVER THE CENTRAL ATLANTIC. MODERATE TO FRESH E TO SE  
WINDS AND 4-6 FT SEAS ARE NOTED ELSEWHERE ACROSS THE BASIN. A FEW  
THUNDERSTORMS ARE NOTED NEAR THE ISLE OF YOUTH OFF WESTERN CUBA.  
 
FOR THE FORECAST, THE AFOREMENTIONED STRONG HIGH PRESSURE AT THE  
NORTH ATLANTIC BUILDING SOUTHWARD TOWARD THE CENTRAL ATLANTIC  
WILL SUPPORT FRESH TO STRONG TRADE WINDS AND ROUGH SEAS ACROSS  
THE WATERS NEAR THE LESSER ANTILLES, AND THE EASTERN AND CENTRAL  
CARIBBEAN, INCLUDING THE ATLANTIC EXPOSURES AND PASSAGES THROUGH  
WED. ON TUE MORNING, A COLD FRONT IS EXPECTED TO ENTER THE  
NORTHWESTERN CARIBBEAN FROM THE GULF OF AMERICA. THEN, IT WILL  
SLOW DOWN AND POSSIBLY STALL FROM WESTERN CUBA TO THE GULF OF  
HONDURAS BY EARLY WED MORNING WHILE DISSIPATING. THIS SHOULD  
DECREASE THE INFLUENCE FROM THE HIGH AND ALLOW WINDS AND SEAS  
ACROSS THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN CARIBBEAN TO GRADUALLY SUBSIDE  
THROUGH FRI.  
   
..ATLANTIC OCEAN  
 
 
A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS IS MOVING OFF THE NORTHEAST FLORIDA COAST  
THIS AFTERNOON AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT MOVING THROUGH  
THE NORTHEAST GULF. STRONG TO GALE FORCE S TO SW WINDS ARE NOTED  
WEST OF 77W TO THE NORTHEAST FLORIDA COAST, WHERE SEAS ARE 6-8  
FT. A BROAD RIDGE EXTENDS ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF BASIN ANCHORED  
BY 1041 MB HIGH PRESSURE CENTERED NEAR 43N52W. A COLD FRONT  
REACHES FROM THE AZORES ISLANDS TO 30N50W. THIS PATTERN IS  
SUPPORTING FRESH TO STRONG EASTERLY WINDS AND 7-10 FT OVER THE  
REMAINDER OF THE AREA WEST OF 35W, AND GENTLE TO MODERATE N TO NE  
WINDS AND 5-7 FT SEAS EAST OF 35W.  
 
FOR THE FORECAST WEST OF 55W, THE NEAR-GALE TO GALE FORCE  
SOUTHERLY WINDS AND ROUGH SEAS OFF NORTHEAST FLORIDA SHOULD  
SHIFT TO THE W TO NW AND DIMINISH TO FRESH TO STRONG SPEEDS THIS  
EVENING AS THE FRONT MOVES EASTWARD THROUGH EARLY TUE. AT THE  
SAME TIME, A LOW PRESSURE MAY DEVELOP ALONG THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY  
AND MOVE QUICKLY NORTHEASTWARD. THE FRONT WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE  
SE AND EXTEND FROM NEAR BERMUDA TO THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS ON WED  
WHILE BECOMING STATIONARY. ELSEWHERE, A SURFACE RIDGE EXTENDS  
SOUTHWARD FROM A HIGH ACROSS 31N62W TO BEYOND SE FLORIDA. THIS  
HIGH WILL CONTINUE TO SUPPORT FRESH TO STRONG WINDS AND ROUGH  
SEAS SOUTH OF 25N, INCLUDING THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS AND GREAT  
BAHAMA BANK THROUGH TUE. BY TUE EVENING, THE RIDGE WILL RETREAT  
EASTWARD IN RESPONSE TO THE AFOREMENTIONED COLD FRONT. THUS,  
MODERATE TO FRESH WINDS AND MODERATE SEAS WILL PREVAIL.  
 
 
CHRISTENSEN  
CLICK HERE TO GO TO PREVIOUS BULLETINS.
The Nexlab TPC Page
Main Text Page