000 AGXX40 KNHC 191848 MIMATS MARINE WEATHER DISCUSSION NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL 300 PM EST FRI MAR 19 2010 MARINE WEATHER DISCUSSION FOR GULF OF MEXICO...CARIBBEAN SEA AND SOUTHWEST NORTH ATLC S OF 31N W OF 55W GULF OF MEXICO... A 1020 MB HIGH PRES ACROSS THEN NORTHERN GULF WATERS NEAR 28N89W WILL MOVE NE THROUGH SAT MORNING WITH SOUTHERLY RETURN FLOW... ALREADY ESTABLISHED OVER THE WESTERN GULF...SPREADING E ACROSS THE AREA BY SAT MORNING IN ADVANCE OF A COLD FRONT MOVING OFF THE TEXAS COAST LATE SAT AFTERNOON. STRONG TO GALE FORCE WINDS AND RAISING SEAS TO AROUND 14 FT WILL FOLLOW THE FRONT. A GALE WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE NW AND SW ZONES SAT EVENING THROUGH EARLY SUN. WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO DIMINISH TO 20 TO 25 KT SUN AFTERNOON AND NEAR OR BELOW 20 KT SUN NIGHT. THE FRONT WILL MOVE SE OF AREA LATE SUN NIGHT. HIGH PRESSURE WILL SHIFT E ACROSS THE NORTHERN WATERS MON AND TUE WITH RETURN FLOW INCREASING AGAIN IN THE W GULF TUE. TROPICAL ATLC AND CARIBBEAN SEA... A COLD FRONT EXTENDING FROM HAITI TO PANAMA NEAR 09N79W WILL BECOME STATIONARY THEN DISSIPATE SAT. A PRE-FRONTAL TROUGH ALONG 73W/74W WILL PERSIST THROUGH TONIGHT WITH INCREASING NE WINDS W OF THE TROUGH AND FRESH TO STRONG E TRADES TO THE E OF THE TROUGH. A WINDSAT PASS FROM EARLY THIS MORNING SHOWED E TO SE WINDS 20 TO 25 KT OVER THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN E OF 68W. A RECENT ASCAT PASS ALSO CONFIRMED THESE WIND SPEEDS. A FEW SHIP REPORTS OVER THE SW CARIBBEAN INDICATED NE WINDS IN THE 15 TO 20 KT RANGE JUST BEHIND THE COLD FRONT. SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS WITH EMBEDDED TSTMS ARE NEAR THE TROUGH AXIS BUT MAINLY OVER HISPANIOLA AND REGIONAL WATERS. E TRADES WILL BUILD WWD ACROSS THE BASIN DURING THE WEEKEND AS HIGH PRES BUILDS N OF AREA. A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO THE NW CARIBBEAN SUN NIGHT AND EXTEND FROM CENTRAL CUBA TO THE GULF OF HONDURAS MON NIGHT THEN FROM HISPANIOLA TO THE SW CARIBBEAN TUE NIGHT. NLY WINDS OF 20 TO 25 KT ARE EXPECTED IN THE WAKE OF THE FRONT BUILDING SEAS TO AROUND 9 FT. TRADES WILL ALSO INCREASE E OF THE LESSER ANTILLES. SW N ATLC W OF 55W... A COLD FRONT ENTERS THE AREA NEAR 31N64W THEN CONTINUES SW CROSSING HAITI INTO THE CARIBBEAN SEA. THE FRONT WILL BECOME NEARLY STATIONARY OVER SE WATERS S OF 23N SAT NIGHT BEFORE DISSIPATING SUN. A WIDE BAND OF SHOWERS WITH EMBEDDED TSTMS IS NOTED ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE FRONT. W TO NW WINDS OF 20 TO 25 KT ARE STILL NOTED OVER THE N WATERS MAINLY N OF 28N BETWEEN 68W AND 74W ASSOCIATED WITH THE SURFACE LOW PRES RELATED TO THE FRONT. HIGH PRESSURE IN THE WAKE OF THE FRONT WILL SHIFT E ACROSS THE AREA SUN. SLY WINDS WILL INCREASE OVER THE NW PORTION OF THE AREA LATE SUN INTO MON AHEAD OF THE NEXT APPROACHING COLD FRONT. THE FRONT WILL MOVE OFFSHORE SUN NIGHT REACHING THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS MON NIGHT AND STRETCHING FROM BERMUDA TO WINDWARD PASSAGE TUE EVENING. SW N ATLC W OF 55W... WARNINGS... ATLC... .NONE. CARIBBEAN... .NONE. GULF OF MEXICO... .GMZ080 AND GMZ082...GALE CONDITIONS EXPECTED EARLY SAT NIGHT INTO EARLY SUN. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT HTTP://WWW.HURRICANES.GOV/MARINE $$ FORECASTER GR