000 AGXX40 KNHC 210705 MIMATS MARINE WEATHER DISCUSSION NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL 200 AM EST WED JAN 21 2009 MARINE WEATHER DISCUSSION FOR GULF OF MEXICO... CARIBBEAN SEA AND SOUTHWEST NORTH ATLC S OF 31N W OF 55W. GULF OF MEXICO... STRONG COLD FRONT HAS CLEARED THE GULF WITH NW WINDS OF 20-25 KT STILL BEING REPORTED OVER MOST OF THE PLATFORMS E OF 88W AS HIGH PRESS BUILDS IN. WINDS HAVE BECOME LIGHT OVER THE FAR W GULF. SEAS ARE RUNNING ABOUT IN LINE WITH THE MWW3 GUIDANCE. HIGH PRES SETTLES IN OVER THE AREA TODAY WITH A DECREASE IN WINDS BUT SEAS REMAIN ELEVATED...8-9 FT OVER THE SE GULF. HIGH PRESS MOVES E OF THE AREA TONIGHT AND THU WITH RETURN SW FLOW SETTING UP W OF 90W THU AND SPREADS OVER MOST OF THE AREA THU NIGHT WITH WINDS PICKING UP TO 20 KT OVER W PORTION INTO FRI. NWP MODELS ARE BACKING OFF SIGNIFICANTLY ON THE TIMING OF THE NEXT FRONT AND MOST DO NOT BRING THE FRONT INTO THE GULF BEFORE SAT NIGHT. IN ADDITION THE MODELS ARE DEPICTING A MORE E-W ORIENTED FRONT WHICH EXTENDS FROM THE FL PANHANDLE/BIG BEND TO THE CENTRAL TEXAS COAST BY LATE SUN. DECENT CAA ALLOWS FOR N TO NE WINDS TO PICK UP TO 20 KT N OF THE FRONT. SW N ATLC... STRONG COLD FRONT EXTENDS FROM 31N69W THROUGH THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS TO 22N79W. MOST RECENT QUIKSCAT AND ASCAT PASSES FROM 2356 UTC AND 0148 UTC INDICATED W TO NW WINDS OF 30-35 KT W OF THE FRONT WITH MISSING DATA AHEAD OF THE FRONT. SINCE THE PASS TIMES WINDS HAVE COME DOWN FURTHER TO 25-27 KT PER BUOYS 44004 AND 41002 AND WILL THEREFORE ALLOW GALE WARNING TO EXPIRE W OF THE FRONT. WILL CONTINUE THE GALE E OF THE FRONT FOR ANOTHER 6 HOURS BUT THIS WILL ONLY BE REFLECTED IN THE INITIAL SYNOPSIS TIME OF THE HIGH SEAS AND NOT IN THE FIRST PERIOD OF THE OFFSHORE WATERS. MWW3 VERIFIED QUITE WELL WITH SEAS PEAKING AT 18-20 FT ALONG THE NRN PERIPHERY OF THE AREA THIS EVENING. FRONT CONTINUES SE AND EXTENDS FROM 26N65W TO HISPANIOLA BY THIS EVENING THEN STALLS IN PLACE THROUGH THU BEFORE SLIDING WWD AS A FRONTAL TROUGH FRI. IN THE MEANTIME WEAK HIGH PRESS SETTLES IN OVER THE AREA WITH LIGHT WINDS AND ELEVATED SEAS OF 8 FT OR GREATER CONFINED TO THE AREA E OF 73W BY LATE FRI. FRONTAL TROUGH DISSIPATES BY SUN AS HIGH PRESS BRIDGES EWD ALONG 28N. NEXT COLD FRONT JUST ENTERS THE AREA BY LATE SUN WITH STRONG CAA RESULTING IN NE WINDS OF 20 KT OR SO. WILL LOOK AT LATER MODEL TRENDS TO SEE IF WINDS PICK UP FURTHER GIVEN THE STRENGTH OF THE COLD AIR N OF THE FRONT. CARIBBEAN AND TROPICAL N ATLC... STRONG COLD FRONT HAS ENTERED THE NW CARIBBEAN AND EXTENDS FROM 22N79W TO THE NRN PORTION OF BELIZE. NW WINDS HAVE PICKED UP TO 25 KT WITH A 30 KT SHIP REPORT FROM THE SHIP IMAGINATION IN THE YUCATAN CHANNEL AT 06 UTC. FRONT CONTINUES SWD AND EXTENDS FROM WINDWARD PASSAGE TO 17N83W THE CURVES SWD TO 11N80W BY THIS EVENING WITH NLY WINDS OF 20 KT IN ITS WAKE...LOCALLY HIGHER ALONG THE COAST OF NICARAGUA. FRONT DISSIPATES IN THE SAME AREA BY LATE THU AND FRI. LIGHT TRADES ELSEWHERE OVER THE CARIBBEAN WITH LONG PERIOD SWELLS SEEPING THROUGH THE WINDWARD ISLANDS. OVER THE TROPICAL N ATLC E WINDS OF 20 KT AND 9-12 FT SEAS ARE NOTED AND EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE WEEKEND WITH PERHAPS A SLIGHT DECREASE SAT AND SUN. PERIODIC LONG PERIOD SWELLS ARRIVES OVER WATERS NE VIRGIN ISLANDS FRI THROUGH SUN. ATLANTIC... NONE. CARIBBEAN... NONE. GULF OF MEXICO... NONE. FORECASTER COBB. TROPICAL PREDICTION CENTER.