000 AXNT20 KNHC 041758 TWDAT TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL 205 PM EDT TUE AUG 04 2015 TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION FOR NORTH AMERICA...CENTRAL AMERICA...GULF OF MEXICO...CARIBBEAN SEA...NORTHERN SECTIONS OF SOUTH AMERICA...AND ATLANTIC OCEAN TO THE AFRICAN COAST FROM THE EQUATOR TO 32N. THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IS BASED ON SATELLITE IMAGERY...WEATHER OBSERVATIONS...RADAR...AND METEOROLOGICAL ANALYSIS. BASED ON 1200 UTC SURFACE ANALYSIS AND SATELLITE IMAGERY THROUGH 1715 UTC. ...SPECIAL FEATURES... A STRONG PRESSURE GRADIENT EXISTS BETWEEN SURFACE RIDGING ANCHORED ACROSS THE SW NORTH ATLC AND LOWER PRESSURE ANALYZED ACROSS NORTHERN COLOMBIA AND EASTERN PANAMA. NEAR GALE TO GALE FORCE WINDS ARE FORECAST TO CONTINUE THROUGH 05/1800 UTC FROM 11N-13N BETWEEN 74W-77W. SEE LATEST NWS HIGH SEAS FORECAST UNDER AWIPS/WMO HEADERS MIAHSFAT2/FZNT02 KNHC FOR MORE DETAILS. ...TROPICAL WAVES... TROPICAL WAVE EXTENDS FROM 10N18W TO 18N21W MOVING W AT 15-20 KT. THE WAVE COINCIDES WITH 700 MB TROUGHING BETWEEN 13W-26W... FOCUSED ON A MID-LEVEL MONSOONAL GYRE CENTERED ON A 1014 MB LOW CENTERED NEAR 09N15W. THE WAVE IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE PROPAGATING WESTWARD AND COME INTO PHASE WITH A MID-LATITUDE 700 MB TROUGH BY WEDNESDAY IN THE VICINITY OF 28W-32W. WIDELY SCATTERED MODERATE CONVECTION IS FROM 05N-13N BETWEEN 12W-22W. TROPICAL WAVE EXTENDS FROM 12N38W TO 18N37W MOVING W AT 10-15 KT. THE WAVE COINCIDES WITH LOW-AMPLITUDE 700 MB TROUGHING BETWEEN 34W-40W. GLOBAL MODEL GUIDANCE ALSO INDICATED AN AREA OF MAXIMUM 850 MB RELATIVE VORTICITY ALONG THE WAVE AXIS NEAR 15N. NO SIGNIFICANT CONVECTION IS OCCURRING WITH THE WAVE AT THIS TIME. TROPICAL WAVE EXTENDS FROM 09N52W TO 17N50W MOVING W AT 15 KT. THE WAVE COINCIDES WITH BROAD 700 MB TROUGHING BETWEEN 48W- 55W...WITH A PORTION OF ENERGY N-NE OF THE WAVE AXIS AS A SURFACE TROUGH FROM 18N49W TO 23N44W. THIS NORTHEASTERN AREA OF ENERGY COINCIDE PRIMARILY WITH A MID-LATITUDE 700 MB TROUGH NEARLY IN PHASE WITH THE TROPICAL 700 MB TROUGHING TO THE SOUTH. NO SIGNIFICANT DEEP CONVECTION IS NOTED WITH THIS WAVE. TROPICAL WAVE EXTENDS FROM 08N80W TO 19N80W MOVING W AT 15 KT. THIS WAVE COINCIDES WITH WEAK AND SUBTLE 700 MB TROUGHING BETWEEN 78W-84W. NO SIGNIFICANT CONVECTION IS OCCURRING WITH THE WAVE AT THIS TIME. ...ITCZ/MONSOON TROUGH... THE MONSOON TROUGH EXTENDS FROM NEAR 09N16W TO 13N28W TO 12N33W. THE INTERTROPICAL CONVERGENCE ZONE AXIS EXTENDS FROM 12N33W TO 12N43W TO 09N51W TO 08N59W. ASIDE FROM CONVECTION OCCURRING WITH THE TROPICAL WAVE ALONG 20W...ISOLATED MODERATE CONVECTION IS FROM 10N-12N BETWEEN 26W-31W...AND FROM 06N-11N BETWEEN 40W-49W. ...DISCUSSION... GULF OF MEXICO... NORTHEASTERLY FLOW ALOFT INFLUENCES MUCH OF THE GULF THIS AFTERNOON ON THE SOUTHEASTERN PERIPHERY OF AN UPPER LEVEL ANTICYCLONE CENTERED OVER CENTRAL TEXAS. THE RIDGING ALOFT IS PROVIDING SUPPORT FOR WEAK RIDGING AT THE SURFACE WITH AN AXIS EXTENDING FROM THE SOUTHERN FLORIDA PENINSULA W-SW TO THE EAST- CENTRAL MEXICO COAST. BETWEEN THIS RIDGE AND WEAK RIDGING ACROSS THE SE CONUS...A SURFACE TROUGH EXTENDS FROM THE SOUTHERN GEORGIA TO COASTAL LOUISIANA. THE WEAK BOUNDARY IS PROVIDING FOCUS FOR LOW-LEVEL MOISTURE CONVERGENCE AND GENERATING SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED TSTMS N OF 26N BETWEEN 82W-93W. OTHERWISE...THE REMAINDER OF THE GULF IS EXPERIENCING LIGHT TO GENTLE BREEZE CONDITIONS AROUND THE RIDGE WHICH IS EXPECTED TO STAY FAIRLY STATIONARY THROUGH THE WEEK. CARIBBEAN SEA... WHILE NEAR GALE TO GALE FORCE WINDS ARE OCCURRING WITHIN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE COAST OF COLOMBIA...THE REMAINDER OF THE BASIN REMAINS RELATIVELY TRANQUIL THIS AFTERNOON. AN ELONGATED UPPER LEVEL LOW IS CENTERED OVER NORTHERN NICARAGUA NEAR 14N84W AND IS PROVIDING INCREASED CLOUDINESS ACROSS THE NW CARIBBEAN...HOWEVER ONLY GENERATING ISOLATED SHOWERS AND POSSIBLE ISOLATED TSTMS W OF 80W AND IN THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS OF EASTERN CUBA. WHILE PRIMARILY ASSOCIATED WITH THE UPPER LEVEL LOW...THE PRESENCE OF A TROPICAL WAVE ALONG 80W IS ADDING ENERGY AND LOW-LEVEL MOISTURE CONVERGENCE TO THE OCCURRING CONVECTION. FARTHER EAST...THE WESTERN PERIPHERY OF AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE CENTERED NEAR 17N58W IS PROVIDING VERY DRY AND STABLE AIR ALOFT TO THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN KEEPING SKIES MOSTLY CLEAR WITH FAIR CONDITIONS. DURING THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS...THE PRIMARILY MARINE IMPACT WILL CONTINUE TO BE AN AREA OF FRESH TO STRONG TRADES WITH THE EMBEDDED AREA OF NEAR GALE TO GALE FORCE. THE AREA IS FORECAST TO SHRINK LATE ON THURSDAY AS THE PRESSURE GRADIENT RELAXES SOMEWHAT DUE TO A WEAKER RIDGE ACROSS THE SW NORTH ATLC REGION. ...HISPANIOLA... DRY AIR AND STABLE CONDITIONS ALOFT CONTINUE TO SPREAD OVER THE ISLAND FROM THE EAST DUE TO AN UPPER LEVEL ANTICYCLONIC CIRCULATION CENTERED NEAR 17N58W. WITH LITTLE MOISTURE TO WORK WITH AND STRONG STABILITY IN THE REGION...NO SIGNIFICANT CONVECTION IS EXPECTED ACROSS THE ISLAND DURING THE NEXT 12 TO 24 HOURS. ATLANTIC OCEAN... AN UPPER LEVEL LONGWAVE TROUGH IS NOTED ON WATER VAPOR IMAGERY OVER THE NE CONUS WITH AN EMBEDDED SHORTWAVE CENTERED IN THE VICINITY OF 36N71W. THE TROUGHING ASSOCIATED WITH THE SHORTWAVE EXTENDS S-SW OVER THE EASTERN SEABOARD AND SUPPORTS A 1011 MB LOW CENTERED AT THE SOUTH CAROLINA COAST NEAR 33N79W. A SURFACE TROUGH AXIS EXTENDS FROM THE LOW ACROSS SOUTHERN GEORGIA TO COASTAL LOUISIANA. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND TSTMS ARE OCCURRING N OF 29N W OF A LINE FROM 29N79W TO 34N73W. THE SOUTH ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF THE SW NORTH ATLC...A WEAK SURFACE RIDGE AXIS EXTENDS FROM NEAR BERMUDA SW TO THE SOUTHERN FLORIDA PENINSULA. HOWEVER...EMBEDDED WITHIN THE RIDGING IS ENERGY...LIKELY FRACTURED AWAY FROM THE TROPICAL WAVE ALONG 80W...ANALYZED AS A SURFACE TROUGH FROM CENTRAL CUBA NEAR 22N79W TO 27N75W. THIS BOUNDARY IS PROVIDING FOCUS FOR SCATTERED SHOWERS AND TSTMS FROM 24N-29N BETWEEN 74W-78W. FINALLY...THE REMAINDER OF THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN ATLC IS UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF A SURFACE RIDGE ANCHORED BY A 1027 MB HIGH CENTERED NEAR 35N53W. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT HTTP://WWW.HURRICANES.GOV/MARINE $$ HUFFMAN