604  
FXUS02 KWBC 191900  
PMDEPD  
 
EXTENDED FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NWS WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER COLLEGE PARK MD  
300 PM EDT TUE AUG 19 2025  
 
VALID 12Z FRI AUG 22 2025 - 12Z TUE AUG 26 2025  
 
...HIGH WAVES AND RIP CURRENTS MAY CONTINUE ALONG THE MID-ATLANTIC  
COAST THROUGH FRIDAY ASSOCIATED WITH DANGEROUS HURRICANE ERIN...  
 
...HEAT WAVE BUILDS OVER THE SOUTHWEST LATE THIS WEEK AND LINGERS  
INTO THE WEEKEND...  
   
..OVERVIEW  
 
AN ANOMALOUSLY STRONG RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE CENTERED OVER THE  
FOUR CORNERS STATES WILL LEAD TO A SIGNIFICANT HEAT WAVE ACROSS  
MUCH OF THE SOUTHWEST THROUGH THE WEEKEND. DOWNSTREAM OF THE RIDGE,  
AN AMPLIFYING TROUGH ACROSS THE EASTERN HALF OF THE U.S. WILL HELP  
TO STEER ERIN AWAY FROM THE MID-ATLANTIC COAST, THOUGH HIGH SURF  
AND RIP CURRENTS MAY CONTINUE TO BE A THREAT THROUGH AT LEAST  
FRIDAY. A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL ACCOMPANY THE EASTERN TROUGH,  
BRINGING A SUBSTANTIAL COOL DOWN EAST OF THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE  
NEXT WEEK. RAINFALL THROUGH THE PERIOD WILL MAINLY FOCUS ACROSS  
THE SOUTH AND EAST, WITH SURGES OF MONSOONAL SHOWERS AND STORMS  
OVER THE SOUTHWEST/ROCKIES AND EVENTUALLY INTO THE CENTRAL PLAINS.  
 
   
..GUIDANCE/PREDICTABILITY ASSESSMENT  
 
MODEL GUIDANCE CONTINUES TO ADVERTISE ABOVE AVERAGE AGREEMENT AND  
PREDICTABILITY FOR MOST OF THE MEDIUM RANGE PERIOD. THE SYNOPTICS  
FAVOR AN INCREASINGLY AMPLIFIED 500MB FLOW PATTERN, WITH A RIDGE  
SHIFTING ABOUT IN THE WEST AND A DEVELOPING TROUGH DEEPENING IN  
THE EAST. THE 00Z AND 06Z RUNS OF THE DETERMINISTIC MODELS HANDLED  
THE DRIVING CANADIAN SHORTWAVES OF THE EASTERN TROUGHING FAIRLY  
SIMILARLY, WITH ONLY MINOR SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL DIFFERENCES THAT  
DID NOT IMPACT THE OVERALL BIG PICTURE NOTED. BY THE END OF THE  
PERIOD, MODELS ARE HINTING AT THE DEVELOPMENT OF A REX BLOCK ALONG  
THE WEST COAST OF THE U.S., ALONG WITH A CLOSED MID-LEVEL LOW WELL  
OFF THE COAST OF BRITISH COLUMBIA. THIS BLOCK IS LIKELY TO KEEP THE  
CLOSED LOW FARTHER OFFSHORE. THE 00Z CMC WAS TOO PROGRESSIVE AND  
TOO CLOSE TO THE COAST COMPARED TO CONSENSUS, SO OPTED TO REMOVE  
ITS CONTRIBUTION BY DAY 6. WITH GREATER CONFIDENCE OF MORE RIDGING  
OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST NEXT WEEK, A FOCUS FOR MORE SIGNIFICANT  
HEAT OVER THE REGION BECOMES MORE LIKELY.  
 
THE WPC FORECAST STARTED WITH A COMPROMISE OF THE DETERMINISTIC  
GUIDANCE, GRADUALLY INCREASING TO INCLUDE HALF OF THE ENSEMBLE  
MEANS AND REMOVING THE 00Z CMC BY THE END OF THE FORECAST PERIOD.  
 
   
..WEATHER/HAZARDS HIGHLIGHTS  
 
HURRICANE ERIN SHOULD BE WELL OFF THE NORTHEAST COAST BY FRIDAY,  
BUT HIGH SURF AND RIP CURRENT THREATS MAY CONTINUE, MAINLY ALONG  
THE MID-ATLANTIC COAST BEACHES. THIS RISK SHOULD GRADUALLY WANE  
THROUGH THE WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK AS ERIN MOVES FARTHER OUT  
TO SEA.  
 
HEAVY RAINFALL WILL FOCUS ALONG A LINGERING FRONTAL BOUNDARY OVER  
THE SOUTHERN STATES THROUGH THE WEEKEND WITH ABOVE NORMAL PW VALUES  
AND INSTABILITY. MARGINAL RISKS REMAIN IN PLACE ON THE DAY  
4/FRIDAY AND DAY 5/SATURDAY EXCESSIVE RAINFALL OUTLOOKS, WITH ONLY  
MINOR ADJUSTMENTS MADE FOR MOST AREAS WITH THE LATEST FORECAST  
PACKAGE. THAT BEING SAID, THE SIGNAL FOR HIGHER QPF WAS A BIT MORE  
PRONOUNCED FOR THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS, AND GIVEN TERRAIN  
SENSITIVITIES, DECIDED TO ADD THAT AREA FOR DAY 4 AND ESPECIALLY ON  
DAY 5.  
 
A STRONG SHORTWAVE AND AMPLIFYING TROUGH WILL SEND A COLD FRONT  
THROUGH THE MIDWEST AND THE EAST THIS WEEKEND. SHOWERS AND  
THUNDERSTORMS WILL LIKELY ACCOMPANY THIS FRONT AS IT MOVES THROUGH  
THE MIDWEST/OHIO VALLEY AND EVENTUALLY INTO THE EAST THIS WEEKEND.  
WITH THE EXCEPTION OF MAYBE FLORIDA, RAINFALL SHOULD CLEAR THE  
EAST COAST BY EARLY NEXT WEEK. IN THE WAKE OF THE FRONT, A  
SIGNIFICANT COOL DOWN IS EXPECTED, SENDING TEMPERATURES WELL BELOW  
CLIMATOLOGY FOR LATE AUGUST.  
 
SURGES OF MOISTURE INTO THE SOUTHWEST UNDER THE BASE OF THE FOUR  
CORNERS RIDGE COMBINED WITH DIURNAL HEATING WILL LIKELY TRIGGER  
STORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HEAVIER RAINFALL OVER MORE SENSITIVE  
AREAS (STEEP TERRAIN, IN/AROUND BURN SCARS, DRY WASHES/ARROYOS,  
URBAN AREAS). A MARGINAL RISK ERO CONTINUES TO BE DEPICTED FOR BOTH  
DAYS 4/5 VALID FOR FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. FAVORABLE FLOW/SHORTWAVE  
ENERGY MAY ALSO SPREAD ACTIVITY INTO THE CENTRAL ROCKIES/PLAINS  
EARLY NEXT WEEK.  
 
HEAT WILL MAINLY FOCUS ACROSS THE WESTERN U.S. INTO THE WEEKEND,  
WITH MAJOR TO LOCALIZED EXTREME HEATRISK LIKELY ACROSS THE  
SOUTHWEST AND DAYTIME TEMPERATURES EXCEEDING 110F IN SOME  
LOCATIONS. FARTHER NORTH INTO THE INTERIOR WEST AND CALIFORNIA  
VALLEY, MODERATE TO LOCALLY MAJOR HEATRISK IS FORECAST. HEAT MAY  
ABATE ACROSS THE SOUTHWEST LATE SUNDAY INTO MONDAY, BUT RAMP UP  
ACROSS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST INTO THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK.  
 
MILLER/SANTORELLI  
 
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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