422  
FXUS62 KRAH 071822  
AFDRAH  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC  
222 PM EDT TUE APR 7 2026  
   
WHAT HAS CHANGED  
 
AS OF 220 PM TUESDAY...  
 
* NO MAJOR CHANGES TO THE FORECAST.  
 
 
   
KEY MESSAGES  
 
AS OF 220 PM TUESDAY...  
 
1) PATCHY FROST POSSIBLE WEDNESDAY MORNING AND THURSDAY MORNING, BUT  
THIS FROST POTENTIAL COULD BE MITIGATED BY WIND TONIGHT AND CLOUDS  
TOMORROW NIGHT.  
 
2) WORSENING DROUGHT CONDITIONS FROM A DRY FORECAST, AND THE  
PROLONGED INFLUENCE OF CONTINENTAL AIR AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY,  
WILL INCREASE FIRE WEATHER CONCERNS THROUGH THE WEEKEND.  
 
 
   
DISCUSSION  
 
AS OF 220 PM TUESDAY...  
 
KEY MESSAGE 1... PATCHY FROST POSSIBLE WEDNESDAY MORNING AND  
THURSDAY MORNING, BUT THIS FROST POTENTIAL COULD BE MITIGATED BY  
WIND TONIGHT AND CLOUDS TOMORROW NIGHT.  
 
THE ARCTIC HIGH WAS CENTERED OVER MI AS OF 17Z THIS AFTERNOON AND  
WILL RIDGE SWD ACROSS THE MID-ATLANTIC AND CAROLINAS AS IT  
PROGRESSES EWD TO OVER NY BY 12Z WED MORNING, WHERE AT 1038 MB IT  
MAY BREAK MONTHLY MSLP RECORDS OVER CNTL AND ERN NY AND PA. THE HIGH  
WILL CONTINUE EWD ACROSS THE NORTHEAST AND OFF THE NEW ENGLAND COAST  
WED/WED NIGHT, BUT WILL CONTINUE TO RIDGE ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH  
THU/FRI. EXPECT CONTINUED ADVECTION OF DRY/CONTINENTAL AIR INTO THE  
AREA THROUGH THE END OF THE WEEK.  
 
TONIGHT: WITH THE STRONG CAA, LOW-LEVEL THICKNESSES DROPPING TO THE  
1300-1310 M RANGE, AND MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES, LOWS ARE FORECAST IN THE  
LOWER-TO-MID-30S ACROSS THE FAR NORTHERN PIEDMONT AND NORTHERN  
COASTAL PLAIN AND 37-41 DEGREES ELSEWHERE. HOWEVER, BREEZY  
CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE GIVEN A FAIRLY STRONG PRESSURE GRADIENT  
FROM THE HIGH TO OUR NORTH, AND MODEL SOUNDINGS INDICATE THERE COULD  
EVEN BE SOME BRIEF GUSTS AT TIMES. GIVEN THIS AND DEWPOINTS FALLING  
INTO THE UPPER TEENS TO MID 20S, THE CHANCE FOR FROST LOOKS LOW  
ENOUGH TO PRECLUDE ISSUING A FROST ADVISORY FOR TONIGHT. IF ANY  
PATCHY FROST WERE TO OCCUR IT WOULD LIKELY BE ALONG AND NORTH OF I-  
85. HOWEVER, EVEN IN THE ABSENCE OF FROST, MAY STILL HARM  
SENSITIVE/UNPROTECTED VEGETATION.  
 
WED NIGHT: WITH THE RIDGE AXIS MORE SQUARELY OVER THE AREA WED  
NIGHT, WINDS SHOULD BE LOWER THAN TONIGHT, POTENTIALLY FULLY  
DECOUPLING IN SOME SPOTS. THUS, WHILE LOW-LEVEL THICKNESSES ARE  
EXPECTED TO BE SEVERAL METERS HIGHER, LOWS WILL BE NEAR IF NOT LOWER  
THAN TONIGHT, RANGING FROM LOW/MID 30S NORTH TO UPPER 30 SOUTH.  
ADDITIONALLY, DEWPOINT TEMPERATURES SHOULD GRADUALLY INCREASE INTO  
THE 30S FROM E-W OVERNIGHT, WHICH WILL INCREASE THE POTENTIAL FOR  
FROST DEVELOPMENT, ESPECIALLY OVER THE PIEDMONT. HOWEVER, WHILE THE  
COVERAGE IS UNCERTAIN, POTENTIAL HIGH CLOUDS OVER THE AREA COULD  
SOMEWHAT LIMIT THE FROST DEVELOPMENT.  
 
KEY MESSAGE 2... WORSENING DROUGHT CONDITIONS FROM A DRY FORECAST,  
AND THE PROLONGED INFLUENCE OF CONTINENTAL AIR AND LOW RELATIVE  
HUMIDITY, WILL INCREASE FIRE WEATHER CONCERNS THROUGH THE WEEKEND.  
 
THE PROLONGED PRESENCE AND INFLUENCE OF THE CP SURFACE HIGH/RIDGE  
THROUGH THE WEEK WILL FAVOR BOTH A DRY FORECAST AND MIN RH VALUES  
BELOW 45% EVERY DAY OF THE FORECAST PERIOD, LOWEST AND MOSTLY IN THE  
20S PERCENT TUE-WED. WHILE ASSOCIATED SURFACE WINDS WILL BE  
RELATIVELY LIGHT THROUGH MOST OF THE FORECAST PERIOD, THEY WILL BE  
RELATIVELY STRONGEST FROM THE NORTHEAST AT 10-15 KTS AND WITH GUSTS  
TO AROUND 20 OR SO KTS WED, WHEN THE MSL PRESSURE GRADIENT AROUND  
THE ANOMALOUSLY STRONG SURFACE HIGH WILL BE MAXIMIZED. DESPITE THE  
DROUGHT CONDITIONS AND STATEWIDE BURN BAN, THE CURRENT FORECAST  
WOULD NOT PROMPT ANY FIRE WEATHER HEADLINES SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY  
AS BOTH WIND AND RH CRITERIA ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE MET CONCURRENTLY.  
 
 
   
AVIATION /18Z TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/  
 
AS OF 150 PM TUESDAY...  
 
VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL ACROSS CENTRAL NC THROUGH THE NEXT 24  
HOURS. A DECK OF HIGH CLOUDS WILL SLOWLY PUSH EAST OF OUR AREA THE  
REST OF THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING, LEAVING MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES  
OVERNIGHT INTO TOMORROW MORNING. THE MAIN CONCERN WILL BE THE  
SURFACE WINDS GUSTING TO AROUND 15 KTS, INITIALLY MOSTLY FROM THE  
NNE THIS AFTERNOON THEN VEERING SLIGHTLY TO NE TONIGHT INTO  
TOMORROW. SOME BRIEF GUSTS MAY CONTINUE AT TIMES OVERNIGHT TONIGHT,  
WITH GUSTINESS INCREASING BY TOMORROW MORNING TO THE 15-25 KT RANGE.  
CAN'T COMPLETELY RULE OUT SOME MARGINAL LOW-LEVEL WIND SHEAR LATE  
THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT, PARTICULARLY AROUND FAY, BUT GIVEN THE  
LOWEST 2 KFT LOOKS TO STAY FAIRLY MIXED, CONFIDENCE IS TOO LOW TO  
INCLUDE IN THE TAFS, AND LOW-LEVEL TURBULENCE IS MORE LIKELY.  
 
OUTLOOK: DRY WEATHER AND VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO PERSIST  
THROUGH THE UPCOMING WEEKEND.  
 
 
   
RAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES  
 
NONE.  
 
 
 
 
 
DISCUSSION...DANCO/KC/GREEN/MWS  
AVIATION...DANCO  
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