507  
FXUS02 KWBC 161858  
PMDEPD  
 
EXTENDED FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NWS WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER COLLEGE PARK MD  
258 PM EDT THU MAY 16 2024  
 
VALID 12Z SUN MAY 19 2024 - 12Z THU MAY 23 2024  
 
   
..OVERVIEW
 
 
REASONABLY AGREEABLE MODEL GUIDANCE INDICATES THAT AN UPPER TROUGH  
AND SURFACE LOW SHOULD MOVE OUT OF THE EASTERN U.S. BUT LINGER IN  
THE WESTERN ATLANTIC THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF NEXT WEEK.  
MEANWHILE, MEAN TROUGHING WILL DEVELOP IN THE WESTERN U.S., WHICH  
ALONG WITH FRONTAL BOUNDARIES SHOULD HELP DEVELOP SOME LOCALLY  
HEAVY CONVECTION ACROSS NORTH-CENTRAL PARTS OF THE PLAINS AND  
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY TOWARD THE GREAT LAKES REGION EARLY TO MIDWEEK.  
LEADING SHORTWAVE ENERGY LOOKS TO PUSH ACROSS THE NORTHERN TWO-  
THIRDS OF THE U.S. ALONG WITH A COLD FRONT TUESDAY-THURSDAY, WHILE  
AN UPPER LOW DROPS SOUTH INTO THE NORTHWEST. COOL CONDITIONS WITH  
INCREASING PRECIPITATION CHANCES ARE FORECAST FOR THE NORTHWEST,  
INCLUDING HIGHER ELEVATION SNOW.  
 
   
..GUIDANCE/PREDICTABILITY ASSESSMENT
 
 
RECENT MODEL GUIDANCE IS GENERALLY AGREEABLE WITH THE OVERALL  
PATTERN, WITH SOME TYPICAL DETAIL UNCERTAINTIES. THERE IS STILL  
SOME SPREAD WITH THE SPECIFICS OF THE EASTERN U.S. TO WESTERN  
ATLANTIC LOW, BUT THE 00Z UKMET SEEMED TO BE THE MAIN OUTLIER WITH  
IT IN SHOWING A FARTHER EAST/PROGRESSIVE SOLUTION MORE REMINISCENT  
OF MODELS FROM A COUPLE DAYS AGO, SO A GFS/ECMWF/CMC BLEND WORKED  
WELL. FARTHER WEST, MODELS INDICATE A FEW FEATURES OF NOTE THAT  
COMBINE INTO THE WESTERN U.S. TROUGH. A SMALL SOUTHERN STREAM  
EASTERN PACIFIC CLOSED LOW SUNDAY WILL TRACK EASTWARD AND GET  
ABSORBED LIKELY MONDAY-TUESDAY, WHILE NORTHERN STREAM ENERGY PIVOTS  
THROUGH THE NORTHWESTERN AND NORTH-CENTRAL U.S. WITHIN THE TROUGH.  
00Z/06Z MODEL GUIDANCE SEEMED AGREEABLE WITH THAT BUT THE NEW 12Z  
CMC NOW LINGERS THAT ENERGY IN THE WEST LONGER WHILE OTHER MODELS  
PROGRESS IT INTO THE MIDWEST. THE NEW 12Z CMC ALSO SEEMS LIKE AN  
OUTLIER UPSTREAM AS IT DOES NOT SHOW THE UPPER LOW DROPPING SOUTH  
THROUGH THE WESTERN SIDE OF THE TROUGH BY MIDWEEK.  
 
THE WPC FORECAST USED A BLEND OF THE 00/06Z GFS AND 00Z ECMWF AND  
CMC RUNS EARLY IN THE PERIOD, WITH GRADUALLY INCREASING  
INCORPORATION OF ENSEMBLE MEANS TO ABOUT HALF BY THE END OF THE  
PERIOD. THIS MAINTAINED GOOD CONTINUITY WITH THE PREVIOUS FORECAST.  
 
   
..WEATHER/HAZARDS HIGHLIGHTS
 
 
DURING THE SUNDAY-MONDAY NIGHT TIME FRAME COVERED BY THE DAYS 4-5  
EXCESSIVE RAINFALL OUTLOOKS, THE PRIMARY REGION OF INTEREST WILL  
EXTEND FROM THE CENTRAL PLAINS INTO THE MIDWEST. A PLAINS SURFACE  
LOW SHOULD LIFT AN INITIALLY STALLING FRONT NORTHWARD AS A WARM  
FRONT WHILE A WAVY BOUNDARY SHOULD HANG UP FOR A TIME OVER THE  
PLAINS/UPPER MIDWEST EARLY NEXT WEEK WHILE AWAITING THE APPROACH OF  
WESTERN U.S. DYNAMICS. THERE IS STILL SOME SCATTER FOR DETAILS OF  
THE PLACEMENT FOR POSSIBLY MULTIPLE ROUNDS OF THUNDERSTORMS IN THIS  
AREA, BUT THE INGREDIENTS OF AMPLE MOISTURE/INSTABILITY AND LIFT  
WARRANT CONTINUING MARGINAL RISKS IN THE EROS FOR BOTH DAYS 4 AND  
5, WITH THREATS ON DAY 5 DEPENDING SOMEWHAT ON HOW DAY 4  
TRANSPIRES. FROM EARLY TUESDAY ONWARD, EXPECT NORTHEASTWARD  
PROGRESSION OF DEVELOPING LOW PRESSURE TO PUSH THE TRAILING COLD  
FRONT AND ACCOMPANYING RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS OF VARYING INTENSITY  
FARTHER EAST AND SOUTH. RAINFALL AMOUNTS COULD BE HEAVY ACROSS THE  
MIDWEST INTO THE GREAT LAKES REGION, BUT OTHER THAN THAT IT WILL  
TAKE ADDITIONAL TIME TO RESOLVE MOST FAVORED AREAS OF HEAVIEST  
RAINFALL IN THE EASTERN AND SOUTHERN U.S. FOR THE TUESDAY-THURSDAY  
TIME FRAME.  
 
ASIDE FROM THE NORTH-CENTRAL U.S., THERE IS SOME CONCERN SUNDAY  
FOR LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN IN THE SOUTHEAST TO SOUTHERN MID-ATLANTIC  
WITH THE DEPARTING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM, BUT WITHOUT ENOUGH OF A  
SIGNAL TO WARRANT A RISK AREA. THEN IN THE WEST, INITIAL UPPER  
TROUGHING WILL SUPPORT SOME PRECIPITATION OVER NORTHERN AREAS WITH  
SCATTERED ACTIVITY POSSIBLY REACHING AS FAR SOUTH AS THE GREAT  
BASIN. SOME SNOW WILL BE POSSIBLE IN THE HIGH ELEVATIONS OF THE  
ROCKIES, ALONG WITH HIGH WINDS POSSIBLE ON SUNDAY. APPROACH/ARRIVAL  
OF ANOTHER UPPER LOW AS CURRENTLY ADVERTISED BY MIDWEEK OR SO  
WOULD PRODUCE SOMEWHAT MORE ORGANIZED PRECIPITATION AT THAT TIME.  
CHANGES IN SNOW LEVELS WILL DEPEND ON THE DEPTH OF THE UPPER LOW.  
 
EXPECT SOUTH TEXAS TO SEE MULTIPLE DAYS OF HAZARDOUS HEAT DURING  
THE PERIOD WITH HIGHS PERSISTENTLY RUNNING 10-15F ABOVE NORMAL WITH  
MAX HEAT INDEX VALUES POSSIBLY REACHING AT LEAST 110F. HIGHS NEAR  
OR OVER 100 DEGREES COULD STRETCH FARTHER NORTH ACROSS THE SOUTHERN  
HIGH PLAINS AT TIMES. SOME DAILY RECORDS FOR HIGHS/WARM LOWS WILL  
BE POSSIBLE. SOUTHERN FLORIDA MAY ALSO EXPERIENCE HAZARDOUS HEAT  
INTO SUNDAY WITH HIGHS LOCALLY UP TO 5-10F ABOVE NORMAL AND MAX  
HEAT INDEX VALUES REACHING 105-110F, FOLLOWED BY CONTINUED ABOVE  
NORMAL BUT SLIGHTLY LESS EXTREME READINGS.  
 
THE FORECAST PATTERN WILL FAVOR BELOW AVERAGE HIGHS OVER THE  
NORTHWEST FOR MOST OF NEXT WEEK, AND INCLUDING THE NORTHERN PLAINS  
BY EARLY NEXT WEEK. THE WARM SECTOR FROM THE HIGH PLAINS INTO THE  
GREAT LAKES/NEW ENGLAND EARLY IN THE WEEK SHOULD SEE HIGHS UP TO  
10-15F OR SO ABOVE NORMAL. COLD FRONTAL PROGRESSION SHOULD BRING  
TEMPERATURES CLOSER TO NORMAL OVER MOST OF THE EASTERN HALF OF THE  
COUNTRY BY MID-LATE WEEK. CLOUDS AND POSSIBLY LINGERING POCKETS OF  
RAINFALL SHOULD KEEP HIGHS ON THE COOL SIDE OVER THE MID-ATLANTIC  
DURING SUNDAY-MONDAY.  
 
TATE/RAUSCH  
 
ADDITIONAL 3-7 DAY HAZARD INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND ON THE WPC MEDIUM  
RANGE HAZARDS OUTLOOK CHART AT:  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/THREATS/THREATS.PHP  
 
WPC MEDIUM RANGE 500MB HEIGHTS, SURFACE SYSTEMS, WEATHER GRIDS,  
QUANTITATIVE PRECIPITATION FORECAST (QPF), EXCESSIVE RAINFALL  
OUTLOOK (ERO), WINTER WEATHER OUTLOOK (WWO) PROBABILITIES, HEAT  
INDICES, AND KEY MESSAGES CAN BE ACCESSED FROM:  
 
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/MEDR/5DAYFCST500_WBG.GIF  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/MEDR/5DAYFCST_WBG_CONUS.GIF  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/5KM_GRIDS/5KM_GRIDSBODY.HTML  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/QPF/DAY4-7.SHTML  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/#PAGE=ERO  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/WWD/PWPF_D47/PWPF_MEDR.PHP?DAY=4  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/HEAT_INDEX.SHTML  
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/#PAGE=OVW  
 

 
 
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