093  
FXUS63 KMKX 220421  
AFDMKX  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI  
1121 PM CDT TUE JUL 21 2026  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- BEACH HAZARDS STATEMENT REMAINS IN EFFECT THROUGH 7 AM  
WEDNESDAY IN SHEBOYGAN & OZAUKEE COUNTIES & 1 PM WEDNESDAY  
FROM MILWAUKEE COUNTY SOUTH TO THE STATE LINE.  
 
- DRY & LESS HUMID THROUGH THE REST OF THE WORK WEEK. MUGGY CONDITIONS  
RETURN THIS WEEKEND.  
 
- SHOWERS & STORMS RETURN TO THE FORECAST SATURDAY NIGHT INTO  
THE BEGINNING OF NEXT WEEK.  
 

 
   
SHORT TERM
 
 
ISSUED 1125 PM CDT TUE JUL 21 2026  
 
REST OF OVERNIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY:  
 
SYNOPSIS/MESOANALYSIS: EARLIER AFTERNOON & EVENING RAIN SHOWERS HAVE  
DISSIPATED POST-SUNSET OVER EAST-CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN.  
BROKEN CLOUD COVER REMAINS OVER THE REGION, WITH SURFACE OBS SHOWING  
A SECONDARY COLD FRONT CONTINUING TO PROGRESS SOUTH ACROSS SOUTHERN  
WISCONSIN. FORWARD PROGRESS OF THE FRONT WAS SIGNIFICANTLY QUICKER  
OVER THE OPEN WATERS OF LAKE MICHIGAN, RESULTING IN A FASTER  
BOUNDARY ARRIVAL & SUBSEQUENT TEMPERATURE DROP IN LAKESHORE  
COMMUNITIES EARLIER IN THE EVENING. THE FRONT WILL MOVE THROUGH THE  
REST OF THE AREA THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE OVERNIGHT, ALLOWING A  
COOL CANADIAN AIR MASS TO SETTLE IN BY DAYBREAK. ARRIVAL OF THE AIR  
MASS WILL BRING SOME OF THE COOLEST OVERNIGHT LOWS SINCE MID-LATE  
JUNE TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY NIGHT. CURRENTLY CENTERED ALONG THE NORTH  
DAKOTA-MANITOBA BORDER, HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD SOUTHEAST INTO THE  
WESTERN GREAT LAKES THROUGH THE PERIOD, MAINTAINING PRECIP-FREE  
CONDITIONS AND PLENTY OF SUNSHINE.  
 
REST OF OVERNIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING: WITH WINDS REMAINING  
ELEVATED BEHIND THE DEPARTING SURFACE FRONT/AHEAD OF THE BUILDING  
SURFACE HIGH, ELEVATED WAVE HEIGHTS WILL PERSIST AT LAKE MICHIGAN  
BEACHES. MODERATE TO HIGH SWIMMING RISK CONDITIONS WILL THUS CONTINUE  
THROUGH MID-DAY WEDNESDAY, WITH BEACH HAZARDS STATEMENTS REMAINING  
IN EFFECT FOR ALL LAKE MICHIGAN COUNTIES. WITH HIGH PRESSURE  
BUILDING IN, WINDS (AND THUS WAVE HEIGHTS) WILL TAPER FROM NORTH TO  
SOUTH BY EARLY WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. THUS NOT ANTICIPATING ANY  
CHANGES TO BEACH HAZARDS STATEMENT END TIMES (7 AM SHEBOYGAN/OZAUKEE  
COS; 1 PM MILWAUKEE/RACINE/KENOSHA COS), BUT WILL NEVERTHELESS  
CONTINUE TO MONITOR TRENDS. EXERCISE EXTREME CAUTION IF HEADING  
LAKESIDE THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING.  
 
QUIGLEY  
 

 
   
LONG TERM
 
 
ISSUED 1125 PM CDT TUE JUL 21 2026  
 
THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY:  
 
SYNOPSIS: UPPER LEVEL RIDGING WILL PERSIST OVER THE WESTERN CONUS  
THROUGH THE PERIOD, WITH WEST-NORTHWEST UPPER LEVEL WINDS EXPECTED  
ACROSS THE WESTERN GREAT LAKES. HIGH PRESSURE WILL SHIFT EAST FRIDAY  
INTO SATURDAY, ALLOWING FOR SOUTHERLY WINDS AND STEADILY CLIMBING  
SURFACE TEMPERATURES THROUGH THE WEEKEND. INCREASING HUMIDITY WILL  
EVENTUALLY ACCOMPANY THE RISING TEMPERATURES, THOUGH ITS ARRIVAL  
WILL LAG BEHIND THAT OF THE WARMER AIR TEMPERATURES. EXPECT THAT  
DEEPER HUMIDITY WILL MAKE IT BACK INTO THE AREA LATER SATURDAY. LOW  
PRESSURE IS PROGGED TO MOVE QUICKLY FROM THE CANADIAN PRAIRIES  
FRIDAY INTO SATURDAY, PULLING A COLD FRONT INTO THE WESTERN GREAT  
LAKES. THE BOUNDARY IS FORECAST TO SLOWLY ADVANCE SOUTHWARD THROUGH  
THE AREA SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY, WITH MEDIUM RANGE GUIDANCE  
SPLIT OVER THE SPEED OF ITS PROGRESSION. WITH THE SLOW-MOVING FRONT  
IMPINGING ON THE NEWLY-ARRIVED MORE HUMID AIR, PERIODS OF SHOWERS  
AND THUNDERSTORMS RETURN TO THE FORECAST FROM SATURDAY NIGHT INTO  
MONDAY. THE AFOREMENTIONED UNCERTAINTIES REGARDING FRONTAL  
PROGRESSION LEAD TO LOW FORECAST CONFIDENCE IN PREFERRED STORM  
TIMING & CORRIDORS AT THIS TIME, WITH DETAILS COMING INTO VIEW AS  
TRENDS CLARIFY THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THIS WEEK.  
 
SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY: CONTINUES TO APPEAR THAT THE MOST  
NOTEWORTHY WEATHER OF THE ENTIRE FORECAST PERIOD WILL OCCUR DURING  
THIS TIME FRAME, WITH RETURNING HEAT/HUMIDITY & A SLOW-MOVING  
SURFACE FRONT LEADING TO ELEVATED (90+ DEGF) HEAT INDICES AND STORM  
CHANCES. TRENDS CONTINUE TO POINT TOWARD HEAT INDICES STAYING JUST  
BELOW ADVISORY THRESHOLDS, WITH THE LATEST STATISTICAL GUIDANCE  
HOLDING MOST > 50% PROBABILITIES OF 100 DEGF HEAT INDICES TO THE  
WEST-SOUTHWEST OF THE AREA. WILL CONTINUE TO BE WATCHING FOR ANY  
UPWARD TRENDS. BLENDED SOLUTION OF THE NBM CURRENTLY FAVORS A SUNDAY  
AFTERNOON & NIGHT TIMING FOR STORMS, IMPLYING THAT SOUTHERN  
WISCONSIN WILL REMAIN TOO CAPPED FOR CONVECTION SATURDAY/SATURDAY  
NIGHT & THAT THE RESPONSIBLE FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL BE TOO FAR SOUTH  
OF THE AREA TO SUPPORT ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT ON MONDAY. QUICK  
COMPARISON OF INDIVIDUAL ENSEMBLE & DETERMINISTIC SOLUTIONS,  
HOWEVER, MAKES IT CLEAR THAT THIS TIMELINE COULD SHIFT WITH CHANGES  
IN FRONTAL SPEED, MESOSCALE INFLUENCES, OR BOTH. THUS ANTICIPATE  
SOME ADDITIONAL SHIFTS IN THE TIMING FORECASTS FOR THE PEAK PRECIP  
WINDOW(S) THROUGH THE SECOND HALF OF THIS WEEK. RAW OVERLAP OF  
MODELED INSTABILITY, SHEAR & PRECIPITABLE WATER IMPLIES THAT THERE  
COULD BE SOME POTENTIAL FOR STRONG/SEVERE STORMS WITH HEAVY  
DOWNPOURS, THOUGH THE AFOREMENTIONED UNCERTAINTIES MAKE IT DIFFICULT  
TO OFFER ADDITIONAL DETAILS AT THIS TIME. WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE  
UPDATES AS TRENDS CLARIFY.  
 
QUIGLEY  
 

 
   
AVIATION
 
 
ISSUED 1125 PM CDT TUE JUL 21 2026  
 
MAINLY VFR FLIGHT CATEGORIES PREVAIL LATE THIS EVENING ACROSS THE  
REGION, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF FAR SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN WHERE BKN CIGS  
BETWEEN FL025 AND FL030 CONTINUE TO LINGER BEHIND AN EVENING FRONTAL  
PASSAGE/INTRUSION OF MARINE AIR FROM LAKE MICHIGAN. HAVE EXTENDED  
THE PRIOR TEMPO MVFR GROUPS AT KMKE AND KENW GIVEN TRENDS, WITH THE  
EXPECTATION STILL BEING FOR LARGER SCALE FLOW TO SCOUR OUT MARINE  
AIR AND LINGERING LOW CIGS THROUGH THE PREDAWN HOURS. WILL CONTINUE  
TO MONITOR TRENDS. HIGH PRESSURE WILL GRADUALLY BUILD IN FROM THE  
NORTHERN PLAINS THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE PERIOD, ALLOWING FOR  
GRADUAL WEAKENING OF SURFACE WINDS BENEATH AREAS OF FEW TO SCT  
CLOUDS BASED BETWEEN FL150 AND FL250.  
 
QUIGLEY  
 

 
   
MARINE
 
 
ISSUED 1125 PM CDT TUE JUL 21 2026  
 
GUSTY NORTH WINDS CONTINUE LATE THIS EVENING ACROSS THE OPEN WATERS  
BEHIND A DEPARTING COLD FRONT. GUSTS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN AT OR  
BELOW 30 KTS ACROSS THE MAJORITY OF THE LAKE, THOUGH A FEW GUSTS  
APPROACHING GALE FORCE REMAIN POSSIBLE THROUGH THE PREDAWN HOURS  
OVER THE NORTHEAST HALF OF THE WATERS. WINDS WILL STEADILY SUBSIDE  
THROUGH THE DAY WEDNESDAY AS 1020 MB HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS INTO THE  
NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEY FROM THE GREAT PLAINS. THE HIGH  
WILL CROSS SOUTHERN LAKE MICHIGAN THURSDAY MORNING, PROGRESSING INTO  
THE NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES THURSDAY NIGHT INTO FRIDAY.  
PROGRESSION OF THE HIGH WILL RESULT IN A SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST WIND  
SHIFT ACROSS THE WATERS.  
 
998 MB LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE QUICKLY FROM THE CANADIAN GREAT PLAINS  
TOWARD QUEBEC FRIDAY THROUGH SATURDAY, MAINTAINING SOUTH TO  
SOUTHWEST WINDS OVER LAKE MICHIGAN. THE LOW WILL ATTEMPT TO PULL A  
COLD FRONT INTO THE WESTERN GREAT LAKES BY SUNDAY, WITH THE BOUNDARY  
SLOWLY ADVANCING SOUTH ACROSS THE WATERS THROUGH MONDAY. THE  
APPROACHING/PASSING FRONT WILL RESULT IN RETURNING THUNDERSTORM  
CHANCES SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY, IN ADDITION TO A NORTHERLY  
WIND SHIFT BY MONDAY AFTERNOON.  
 
ELEVATED WINDS AND WAVE HEIGHTS WILL LINGER INTO WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON  
IN NEARSHORE ZONES. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES REMAIN IN EFFECT THROUGH  
7 AM CDT WEDNESDAY MORNING FROM NORTH POINT NORTH TO SHEBOYGAN, AND  
UNTIL 4 PM CDT WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON FROM NORTH POINT SOUTH TO  
WINTHROP HARBOR. WILL BE MONITORING FOR ADDITIONAL PERIODS OF SMALL  
CRAFT ADVISORY CONDITIONS FRIDAY INTO THE WEEKEND AS HIGH PRESSURE  
SHIFTS EAST AND A COLD FRONT ATTEMPTS TO WORK INTO THE WESTERN GREAT  
LAKES. SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM CHANCES RETURN LATE SATURDAY NIGHT  
INTO MONDAY AHEAD OF THE FRONT.  
 
QUIGLEY  
 

 
   
MKX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
WI...BEACH HAZARDS STATEMENT...WIZ066-WIZ071-WIZ072 UNTIL 1 PM  
WEDNESDAY.  
 
BEACH HAZARDS STATEMENT...WIZ052-WIZ060 UNTIL 7 AM WEDNESDAY.  
 
LM...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY...LMZ643-LMZ644 UNTIL 7 AM WEDNESDAY.  
 
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY...LMZ645-LMZ646 UNTIL 4 PM WEDNESDAY.  
 

 
 

 
 
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