587  
FXUS02 KWBC 300720  
PMDEPD  
 
EXTENDED FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NWS WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER COLLEGE PARK MD  
320 AM EDT THU MAY 30 2024  
 
VALID 12Z SUN JUN 02 2024 - 12Z THU JUN 06 2024  
   
..GENERAL OVERVIEW  
 
AN ACTIVE FLOW PATTERN OVER BOTH CENTRAL/EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE  
COUNTRY AND FROM THE PACIFIC ACROSS THE NORTHERN TIER U.S. AND  
SOUTHERN CANADA (WITH MULTIPLE FRONTAL SYSTEMS) SHOULD FAVOR  
MULTIPLE EPISODES OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FROM THE WEEKEND  
INTO NEXT WEEK. THE SOUTHWEST SHOULD REMAIN MOSTLY DRY, WHILE  
SOUTHERN TEXAS SHOULD SEE PERSISTENT HOT AND HUMID CONDITIONS UNDER  
THE NORTHERN PERIPHERY OF AN UPPER RIDGE ANCHORED OVER MEXICO. A  
DEVELOPING RIDGE OVER THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE WEST BY MID-WEEK  
WILL BRING WIDESPREAD ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES AND POTENTIALLY  
HAZARDOUS HEAT.  
   
..GUIDANCE/PREDICTABILITY ASSESSMENT  
 
INITIAL UNCERTAINTY INTO THE MEDIUM-RANGE PERIOD NOT SURPRISINGLY  
REVOLVES AROUND THE TIMING OF MULTIPLE SHORTWAVES PASSING FROM THE  
PLAINS/MISSISSIPPI VALLEY EASTWARD TOWARDS THE MIDWEST/OHIO VALLEY  
BEFORE SHEARING OFF TOWARDS THE EAST COAST. THE 12Z ECMWF/UKMET,  
SUPPORTED BY THE 12Z ICON AND SUITE OF EC MACHINE LEARNING (ML)  
MODELS, LIE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ENVELOPE OF ALL SOLUTIONS SHOWING  
AN INITIAL WAVE LIFTING INTO THE OHIO VALLEY WITH THE 12Z CMC A  
BIT FASTER AND THE 18Z GFS THE MOST DIFFERENT, RACING AHEAD THE  
OTHER SOLUTIONS IN EASTWARD POSITION/MOVEMENT AND WITH A SECONDARY  
WAVE TO ITS SOUTHWEST. TIMING IS A BIT MORE EVENLY DISTRIBUTED  
WITH ANOTHER RATHER PROGRESSIVE WAVE FOLLOWING IN ITS WAKE, WITH  
THE CLUSTER OF SOLUTIONS LIKELY PROVIDING A GOOD COMPROMISE. BEGAN  
WITH A MULTI-MODEL BLEND SLIGHTLY FAVORED TOWARDS THE ECMWF/UKMET/CMC  
OVER THE GFS GIVEN THE STRONGER INITIAL DIFFERENCES. ATTENTION  
THEN TURNS WEST AS SHORTWAVE ENERGY EJECTS FROM A DEEP CLOSED LOW  
SOUTH OF ALASKA, TRAVERSING AN EASTWARD PATH CLOSE TO THE  
INTERNATIONAL BOARDER, BEFORE A BROAD LONGWAVE RIDGE BUILDS OVER  
THE WEST. THE DETERMINISTIC GUIDANCE FALLS INTO THREE CAMPS WITH  
RESPECT TO BOTH FEATURES, WITH THE RIDGE IN THE ECMWF TAKING A MORE  
WESTERN POSITION ANCHORED TOWARDS THE WEST COAST, THE GFS FURTHER  
EAST CENTERED MORE OVER THE INTERMOUNTAIN WEST, AND THE CMC IN  
BETWEEN, A BIT CLOSER TO THE ECMWF BUT LESS AMPLIFIED WITH RESPECT  
TO BOTH THE ECMWF AND GFS WITH THE RIDGE IN GENERAL. FURTHER EAST,  
THE GFS AND ECMWF ARE MORE AGGRESSIVE WITH THE LEAD SHORTWAVE  
ENERGY DIGGING SOUTHWARD OVER THE MIDWEST/GREAT LAKES WHILE THE CMC  
IS SIMILARLY LESS AMPLIFIED FURTHER EAST WITH A MORE NORTHERLY  
WAVE TRACK. THE 12Z ECENS/GEFS MEANS ARE SIMILAR TO THEIR  
RESPECTIVE DETERMINISTIC COUNTERPARTS WITH BOTH THE RIDGE AND  
NORTHERN WAVE, THOUGH WITH A LESSER DEGREE OF AMPLIFICATION. THE  
12Z ICON WAS MORE SIMILAR TO THE 12Z ECMWF, WITH THE SUITE OF EC ML  
MODELS ONCE AGAIN PROVIDING A RANGE OF SOLUTIONS ENCOMPASSING THE  
DETERMINISTIC/ENSEMBLE MEAN SOLUTIONS. GIVEN THIS RANGE OF  
SOLUTIONS, OPTED FOR AN EVEN BLEND OF THE DETERMINISTIC AND  
ENSEMBLE MEAN GUIDANCE FOR THIS LATTER PERIOD UNTIL THERE IS MORE  
MOVEMENT TOWARDS ONE OF THE SOLUTIONS. THE OVERALL PATTERN,  
SPECIFICALLY THE NOTABLE RIDGING IN THE WEST, IS STILL RELATIVELY  
WELL AGREED UPON, WITH A HEAT WAVE EXPECTED OVER THE REGION BUT  
WITH DIFFERENCES ON EXTENT WITH RESPECT TO TIME AND COVERAGE.  
 
   
..WEATHER/HAZARDS HIGHLIGHTS  
 
PERIODS OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED BROADLY ACROSS  
CENTRAL AND EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE COUNTRY HEADING INTO NEXT WEEK  
WITH MULTIPLE UPPER-LEVEL WAVES AND ACCOMPANYING SURFACE FRONTAL  
SYSTEMS ENCOUNTERING A HUMID AIRMASS. BOTH THE UNCERTAINTY AT THIS  
RANGE WITH RESPECT TO THE TIMING OF THE WAVES AND THEIR GENERALLY  
PROGRESSIVE NATURE MAKE IT A MORE DIFFICULT TASK TO NARROW DOWN  
AREAS OF POTENTIALLY LOCALLY HEAVIER RAINFALL AND FLASH FLOOD  
CONCERNS. THE UPDATED DAY 4 AND 5 EXCESSIVE RAINFALL OUTLOOKS  
(EROS) CONTAIN MULTIPLE MARGINAL RISKS WHERE GUIDANCE SHOWS THE  
BEST OVERLAP OF HIGHER QPF VALUES. FOR DAY 4 (SUNDAY), THIS  
INCLUDES PORTIONS OF THE SOUTHERN PLAINS AND LOWER MISSISSIPPI  
VALLEY AS WELL AS THE UPPER MIDWEST IN THE WAKE OF AN INITIAL  
SHORTWAVE LIFTING THROUGH THE OHIO VALLEY AND A SECOND APPROACHING  
WAVE/FRONTAL SYSTEM PASSING FROM THE PLAINS TOWARDS THE MISSISSIPPI  
VALLEY. SOME BETTER AGREEMENT IN THE DETERMINISTIC GUIDANCE FOR  
POTENTIALLY MORE WIDESPREAD HEAVIER RAINFALL WORTHY OF A SLIGHT  
RISK WAS NOTED FROM MINNESOTA INTO WISCONSIN, HOWEVER THE SUBTLE  
AND PROGRESSIVE NATURE OF THE UPPER-LEVEL WAVE STILL CASTS SOME  
DOUBT ON THE TIMING AND EXTENT OF RAINFALL, BACKED UP BY LOW  
ENSEMBLE PROBABILITIES. SOME MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINFALL WILL ALSO  
BE POSSIBLE IN THE OHIO VALLEY AS THE LEAD WAVE LIFTS THROUGH. AN  
ADDITIONAL ROUND OF STORMS IS EXPECTED DAY 5 (MONDAY) AHEAD OF THE  
FRONTAL SYSTEM PUSHING FURTHER INTO THE GREAT LAKES AND SOUTHWARD  
INTO THE MIDDLE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY AND CENTRAL/SOUTHERN PLAINS,  
WITH ANOTHER MARGINAL RISK INTRODUCED FOR THE LATTER REGION.  
ANOTHER UPPER-LEVEL SYSTEM IS EXPECTED TO TRAVERSE THE INTERNATIONAL  
BORDER AND EVENTUALLY DIG SOUTHEASTWARD INTO THE MIDWEST. THIS MAY  
BRING AREAS OF MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINFALL TO THE UPPER MIDWEST  
TUESDAY AND OHIO VALLEY/LOWER GREAT LAKES BY WEDNESDAY, THOUGH WITH  
GREATER UNCERTAINTY. ADDITIONAL WEAK UPPER- LEVEL ENERGIES FROM  
THE SOUTHERN PLAINS TO THE SOUTHEAST WILL ALSO KEEP UP THE  
POTENTIAL FOR ADDITIONAL STORMS.  
 
AN UPPER-LEVEL WAVE AND ACCOMPANYING PLUME OF PACIFIC MOISTURE  
WILL BRING HEAVY RAINFALL TO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST ON SUNDAY. A  
MARGINAL RISK IS INCLUDED ON THE DAY 4 ERO ALONG THE WASHINGTON/OREGON  
COASTS AND INLAND TO THE CASCADES. THE WARM MOIST AIR SHOULD KEEP  
SNOW LIMITED TO ONLY THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN PEAKS. THE WARMER  
TEMPERATURES MAY ALSO HELP ENHANCE SNOWMELT LOCALLY, ADDING TO THE  
RISK FOR SOME ISOLATED FLOODING CONCERNS. WHILE STREAMFLOWS ARE LOW  
LOCALLY, ANOTHER SLIGHT RISK MAY BE NECESSARY HERE IF THE FORECAST  
QPF AMOUNTS CONTINUE TO INCREASE. THE PRECIPITATION WILL SPREAD  
INLAND OVER THE NORTHERN ROCKIES MONDAY WITH THE CHANCE FOR LOCALLY  
HEAVY AMOUNTS OVER 1 INCH, AND A MARGINAL RISK INTRODUCED.  
PRECIPITATION CHANCES WILL LINGER INTO MIDWEEK FOR THE PACIFIC  
NORTHWEST, THOUGH SHOULD DECREASE EACH DAY AS RIDGING BUILDS IN  
MORE BROADLY OVER THE WEST.  
 
FORECAST HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL START ABOVE AVERAGE BY 10-15  
DEGREES LATE THIS WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK OVER PORTIONS OF  
THE HIGH PLAINS AS WELL AS NEW ENGLAND, WITH GENERALLY NEAR-AVERAGE  
TEMPERATURES IN BETWEEN WITH DAILY BOUTS OF STORMS FOR THE  
PLAINS/MISSISSIPPI VALLEY/SOUTHEAST. ONE EXCEPTION WILL BE SOUTH  
TEXAS WESTWARD THROUGH THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY, WHERE THE COMBINATION  
OF HOT TEMPERATURES INTO THE 90S AND 100S AS WELL AS HUMIDITY WILL  
KEEP HEAT INDICES IN THE UPPER 100S, LOCALLY 110+. HIGHS WILL  
INITIALLY REMAIN BELOW AVERAGE OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST AS THE  
PACIFIC SYSTEM PASSES THROUGH THE REGION. THE BIG STORY  
TEMPERATURE-WISE WILL BEGIN TO DEVELOP BY MID-WEEK AS RIDGING  
BUILDS OVER THE WEST. HIGHS BROADLY WILL BE RUNNING 10-15 DEGREES  
ABOVE AVERAGE, WITH EVEN WARMER ANOMALIES OF 15-20+ DEGREES FOR THE  
CENTRAL CALIFORNIA VALLEYS AND PORTIONS THE GREAT BASIN. FORECAST  
HIGHS ARE INTO THE 100S FROM WEST TEXAS INTO THE DESERT SOUTHWEST  
AND CENTRAL CALIFORNIA VALLEYS. UNFORTUNATELY, THE CLIMATE  
PREDICTION CENTER HAS HIGHLIGHTED MUCH OF THIS REGION WITH AT LEAST  
A SLIGHT RISK OF EXCESSIVE HEAT WITH THE EXPECTATION THIS HEAT  
WAVE WILL CONTINUE BEYOND THE CURRENT FORECAST PERIOD INTO AT LEAST  
NEXT WEEKEND.  
 
PUTNAM  
 
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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