432 FXUS63 KILX 212002 AFDILX AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL 302 PM CDT TUE MAY 21 2013 .DISCUSSION... ISSUED 300 PM CDT TUE MAY 21 2013 AFTER SEVERAL WARM AND HUMID DAYS...WE ARE HEADED TOWARD AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF AT OR BELOW NORMAL TEMPS AS THE OCCLUDED LOW OVER THE MN/SD BORDER FINALLY BECOMES PROGRESSIVE AND DEPARTS EASTWARD THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES IN THE NEXT COUPLE DAYS. SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY. THE LATEST SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS THE SYNOPTIC COLD FRONT ENTERING WESTERN IL AT 19Z. SATELLITE LOOPS SHOW A TRAIN OF 3 STORM COMPLEXES FROM OKLAHOMA TO TENNESSEE MOVING EAST. OUR AREA WILL SEE ONE MORE ROUND OF SHOWERS AND STORMS TONIGHT...BUT NO SEVERE STORMS ARE EXPECTED. THE NOON UPDATE TO THE DAY ONE OUTLOOK FROM SPC PUSHED THE NORTHERN EDGE OF THE SLIGHT RISK AREA SOUTH INTO THE OHIO RIVER VALLEY. THAT SEEMS TO BE IN RESPONSE TO MARGINAL INSTABILITY AND WIND SHEAR NORTH OF THE STORM COMPLEXES TO THE SOUTH. ALSO...THOSE SYSTEMS WILL LIKELY CUT LIMIT OUR SUPPLY OF MOISTURE ON THE SOUTHERLY LLJ. WE STILL KEPT CATEGORICAL POPS IN THE MAJORITY OF OUR COUNTIES TONIGHT AS A WAVE OF LOW PRESSURE LIFTS NORTHEAST ALONG THE COLD FRONT OVERNIGHT...WITH ITS PATH SET TO BE ROUGHLY UP THE I-55 CORRIDOR. EAST OF THAT TRACK WE MAY SEE SOME STORMS DEVELOP...WITH GUSTY WINDS, SMALL HAIL AND LOCALLY HEAVY DOWNPOURS. THE 4KM HRRR SHOWS STEADY RAINS MAINLY SOUTHEAST OF I-55 TONIGHT...WHILE THE NCEP 4KM-WRF-NMM SHOWS WIDESPREAD RAINS DEVELOPING BY 06Z ALL ACROSS OUR COUNTIES AND LINGERING THROUGH WED MORNING IN THE EAST. OUR REGULAR DETERMINISTIC MODELS WERE GENERALLY IN AGREEMENT WITH THAT PROGRESSION AS WELL. AS THE COLD FRONT FINALLY DEPARTS INTO INDIANA ON WEDNESDAY...SHOWERS WILL STILL LINGER IN CENTRAL IL. AN ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM MAY DEVELOP IN THE EAST...BUT DRY AND STABLE AIR SHOULD BEGIN TO SHUT DOWN CONVECTIVE UPDRAFTS IN THE SW HALF OF OUR AREA BY WEDNESDAY EVENING. SHOWER CHANCES WILL CONTINUE ON THURSDAY AS THE UPPER COLD POOL SLIDES ACROSS IL. STEEP LAPSE RATES WILL HELP FUEL SOME DIURNAL SHOWERS...WITH HELP FROM A 500 MB SHORTWAVE ROUNDING THE BASE OF THE UPPER TROUGH. DRY AND COOL CONDITIONS SHOULD RETURN TO THE AREA FOR THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY. LOWS FRIDAY MORNING WILL DIP INTO THE LOW 40S IN MUCH OF THE AREA...WITH AFTERNOON HIGHS IN THE UPPER 60S. LONG TERM...SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. SATURDAYS TEMPS WILL REMAIN BELOW NORMAL IN THE UPPER 60S TO AROUND 70...AS CLOUDS AND SHOWERS RETURN TO CENTRAL IL...ACCORDING TO THE ECMWF. THE GFS KEEPS THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND DRY UNTIL LATE SATURDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY MORNING THEN KEEPS RAIN THROUGH MEMORIAL DAY. THE ECMWF ON THE OTHER HAND SHOWS THE OPPOSITE TREND. IT HAS WET CONDITIONS FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT...THEN DRY SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY AS IT PUSHES THE COLD FRONT SOUTH OF IL. THE ALLBLEND HAS BEEN INFLUENCED BY BOTH SOLUTIONS...SO THE EXTENDED IS FULL OF CHANCE POPS. THE CANADIAN IS MORE CLOSELY FOLLOWING THE GFS SOLUTION...SO THERE APPEARS TO BE MORE MOMENTUM TOWARD A WET END TO THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND. SHIMON && .AVIATION... ISSUED 108 PM CDT TUE MAY 21 2013 ONLY MADE A FEW CHANGES TO THE TAFS FOR CENTRAL AND EASTERN ILLINOIS WITH THE EARLY AFTERNOON UPDATE. GUSTY SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL BE THE RULE THIS AFTERNOON AS PLENTY OF DOWNWARD MOMENTUM AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT IS PRESENT. THIS WILL ALSO DRY OUT THE LOWER ATMOSPHERE A BIT THIS AFTERNOON...KEEPING THE BEST INSTABILITY IN SOUTHERN IL AND SOUTH OF THE OHIO RIVER VALLEY. CONVECTION CURRENTLY FROM THE OHIO VALLEY BACK INTO THE SOUTHERN PLAINS IS ALSO EXPECTED TO TRAP THE BEST LOW LEVEL RETURN FLOW WELL TO OUR SOUTH. THIS MEANS THAT THE PRIMARY WINDOW FOR CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT WILL BE THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT AHEAD OF A SLOWLY ADVANCING COLD FRONT. THERE IS SOME UNCERTAINTY AS TO HOW LOW THE CEILINGS ARE EXPECTED TO DROP TO LATE TONIGHT AND INTO WEDNESDAY MORNING. THE NAM IS VERY BULLISH WITH THE IFR AND LIFR CEILINGS BEHIND THE COLD FRONT PASSAGE. HOWEVER...LOWER CEILINGS IN THIS RANGE TYPICALLY OCCUR CLOSER TO THE LOW TRACK...WHICH THE NAM AND GFS BOTH TAKE NORTH OF THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN IL TAF SITES. THUS...WILL GO WITH MVFR CEILINGS IN THE 1-2 KFT RANGE TOWARD EARLY MORNING IN CENTRAL IL AND AFTER DAYBREAK INTO THE EARLY AFTERNOON IN EASTERN IL. MILLER && .ILX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && $$