


Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Sterling, VA
Issued by NWS Sterling, VA
507 FXUS61 KLWX 200052 AFDLWX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Baltimore MD/Washington DC 852 PM EDT Tue Aug 19 2025 .SYNOPSIS... High pressure to our north will continue to funnel cool and moist air into the region off the Atlantic Ocean through Wednesday. A cold front will approach the region Wednesday before pushing through Wednesday night. This will help to drag Hurricane Erin well offshore. Weak high pressure builds across the region late in the week into Saturday. An area of low pressure will track toward Hudson Bay over the weekend. The associated cold front will move through early next week. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... An onshore flow will continue through the night. Some drizzle or a few showers will linger across southern Maryland and the Chesapeake Bay. Low temperatures will drop into the 60s. An approaching cold front and departing surface high pressure to our northeast will result in a shift to southerly winds across the region. Low clouds and patchy fog to start the day Wednesday will give way to sun and then increasing clouds through the day Wednesday. A warm front will lift into the region before a cold front arrives and brings a couple of showers and thunderstorms to the region. Highs Wednesday afternoon should rise into the lower to middle 80s. && .SHORT TERM /WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/... Previous discussion... Showers will likely continue into Wednesday night with some pretty decent moisture in place ahead of the front itself. As this collides with the outer periphery of Hurricane Erin, this could result in a localized zone of very heavy rain during the overnight hours. No Flood Watch is necessary at this point, but some of the high-resolution model guidance has some substantial rainfall amounts, particularly in central/northeast MD. On Thursday morning, the frontal boundary nearby begins to accelerate toward the southeast as a cold front. As this occurs, Hurricane Erin is expected to be a couple hundred miles offshore of the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Despite its position well southeast of the Mid-Atlantic region, an uptick in synoptic winds is likely due to the very expansive wind field that Erin has amassed at this point. The current forecast calls for high temperatures in the mid 70s to low 80s, but with northerly gusts of 15 to 25 mph. While some showers are possible, much of the day is likely dry with the post- frontal wind shift to northerly. This cold advection regime will make for a cooler night on Thursday. Low temperatures are expected to drop into the upper 50s to mid 60s (mid/upper 50s for mountain locales). && .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... High pressure to the northeast will build into the area Friday, and a shortwave ridge will quickly pass across the area aloft. This should keep conditions dry, although some residual moisture may linger across the southwestern part of the CWA as the frontal zone hangs up along the central and southern Appalachians. The high will move farther to the east on Saturday, allowing southerly flow to take over which will warm temperatures back closer to normal (though likely remaining below 90F for most areas). A potent shortwave trough will also be digging through the Great Lakes over the weekend. There is some uncertainty with how much forcing will reach the area Saturday, but there may be enough height falls along with increasing moisture and terrain circulations to result in some showers and thunderstorms mainly west of the Blue Ridge. While there is some uncertainty still in the timing, the cold front will approach the area on Sunday. The chance for showers and thunderstorms will be highest this day as increased dew points pool ahead of the front. Machine learning models indicate low probabilities of severe thunderstorms given increasing wind profiles aloft. Modest instability will be the limiting factor. Some guidance is slow to move the front eastward Monday, but the highest chance of rain should be east of the area. If not Monday, then definitely Monday night and Tuesday will feature the arrival of cooler air and lower dew points. Highs Tuesday will be in the upper 70s and lower 80s as dew points drop to the 50s if not upper 40s under mostly sunny skies. && .AVIATION /01Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... IFR to LIFR CIGs are likely again tonight owing to persistent low stratus. There will also likely be drizzle in most of the same spots, perhaps lasting into the mid- morning hours. On Wednesday, the frontal zone to the south eventually begins to move across the area as a warm front. Depending on its location, a gradual shift to southeasterly winds are expected on Wednesday. Some restrictions are possible in the morning as low ceilings continue, but improvement is expected mid-late morning. Some afternoon showers and thunderstorms may impact the more western TAF sites. The frontal zone eventually pulls away from the region late Wednesday into Thursday as a cold front. During the overnight hours on Wednesday, some heavy rain is possible in central/northeast MD, so that will be something to watch in future TAF updates. In the wake, increasing north- northeasterly winds are likely with gusts up to 15 to 20 knots, perhaps a bit higher depending on Hurricane Erin`s influences. A few showers are also possible on Thursday as the system pulls away. Tranquil weather is expected Friday under weak high pressure. A thunderstorm is possible at MRB Saturday afternoon or evening as the next frontal system begins to approach. This front will cross the area Sunday with a greater chance of showers and thunderstorms areawide. && .MARINE... Small craft advisories for the open waters of the Bay will linger for another hour or so as northeast winds remain a little gusty. Winds should start to taper off before midnight as a mesolow pulls away. After a temporary reprieve in the winds, another round of gusty conditions are expected late Wednesday into Thursday. This is in response to the expanding wind field of Hurricane Erin. Northerly gusts of 20 to 25 knots are looking likely, with the potential for Gale/Tropical Storm Force wind gusts, at least briefly, Thursday afternoon/evening as Erin makes its closest approach. SCA conditions may continue into Friday for parts of the waters in northerly flow. High pressure building north of the area will turn winds to the east Friday night and then to the south Saturday, likely below advisory levels. Southerly channeling may increase winds to near advisory criteria by Saturday evening. An approaching cold front may bring thunderstorms on Sunday as southerly winds continue. && .TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING... Tidal anomalies will steadily rise for the next 24 hours as onshore flow strengthens in response to Hurricane Erin tracking east of the area. A Coastal Flood Warning remains in effect for Annapolis, with Coastal Flood Advisories for Solomon`s Island, Baltimore, and Dahlgren. Additional advisories are likely needed to account for high tides Wednesday into Wednesday night. The winds turn northeast then north by Thursday morning, which will allow water levels to rapidly drop Thursday afternoon into Friday. && .LWX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... DC...None. MD...Coastal Flood Advisory from 3 AM to 9 AM EDT Wednesday for MDZ011. Coastal Flood Warning until 8 AM EDT Wednesday for MDZ014. Coastal Flood Advisory until 4 AM EDT Wednesday for MDZ016. Coastal Flood Advisory until 2 PM EDT Wednesday for MDZ018. VA...Coastal Flood Advisory until 4 AM EDT Wednesday for VAZ057. WV...None. MARINE...Small Craft Advisory until 11 PM EDT this evening for ANZ534- 537-542-543. && $$ SYNOPSIS...CJL NEAR TERM...KLW/CJL SHORT TERM...CJL LONG TERM...ADS AVIATION...ADS/KLW/CJL MARINE...ADS/KLW/CJL TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING...KLW