000 AGXX40 KNHC 020730 MIMATS MARINE WEATHER DISCUSSION NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL 230 AM EST WED MAR 02 2011 MARINE WEATHER DISCUSSION FOR THE GULF OF MEXICO...CARIBBEAN SEA AND TROPICAL N ATLC...AND SOUTHWEST NORTH ATLC S OF 31N W OF 55W. GULF OF MEXICO... LATEST SATELLITE IMAGERY FROM EARLY THIS MORNING SHOW THE COLD FRONT NOW HAVING REACHED THE FAR EASTERN PORTION OF THE GULF FROM THE FLORIDA KEYS WNW TO 26N89W WHERE IT BECOMES STATIONARY ...THEN DROPS SSW INTO THE EASTERN BAY OF CAMPECHE. STRONG HIGH PRES IS PRESENT TO THE N OF THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY. CURRENT AND RECENT RECENT BUOY OBSERVATIONS AND OIL RIG PLATFORM SITES FROM ACROSS THE GULF SHOW NE-E WINDS OF 15-20 KT OVER EASTERN HALF OF THE GULF MAINLY N OF 25N...WHILE NE-E 10 KT WINDS ARE OCCURRING IN THE NW GULF ZONE...N-NE 10-15 KT WINDS IN THE SW ZONE AND OVER THE FAR SE PORTION. BUOYS THROUGHOUT REVEAL SEAS IN THE RANGE OF 3-5 FT N OF 25N E OF 92W...AND 2-4 FT ELSEWHERE. WITH BROAD SCALE UPPER LEVEL RIDGING TAKING HOLD OF THE AREA ...THE COLD FRONT WILL HAVE LITTLE UPPER SUPPORT TO MAINTAIN ITS IDENTITY FOR MUCH LONGER SO IT WILL GRADUALLY DISSIPATE THROUGH THIS MORNING AS IT MOVES S. THE STATIONARY PORTION WILL HANG BACK ACROSS TO ACROSS CENTRAL GULF PORTION THROUGH THU NIGHT BEFORE WASHING OUT AS A LARGE AREA OF HIGH PRES BUILDS E OVER THE SE U.S. THROUGH TONIGHT THEN INTENSIFIES AS IT BUILDS SW ACROSS MUCH OF THE MIDDLE AND EASTERN GULF ZONES THU THROUGH SAT. THE PRES GRADIENT CREATED BY THE BUILDING RIDGE WILL RESULT IN WINDS TO SUBSTANTIALLY INCREASE OVER THE EASTERN AND MIDDLE GULF TONIGHT THROUGH SAT...E-SE IN DIRECTION WITH SPEEDS OF 20-25 KT WITH SEAS BUILDING UP TO 9 FT BY SAT. THE GLOBAL MODELS AND REGIONAL NAM SUGGEST THAT THE NEXT COLD FRONT MOVES OFF THE TEXAS COAST SAT AFTERNOON PER REASONABLE AND PRETTY GOOD CONSISTENCY OF THE TIMING BY THE MODELS. PRESENTLY...IT APPEARS THE FRONT WILL MOVE TO A POSITION FROM NEAR SE LOUISIANA TO FAR WESTERN BAY OF CAMPECHE BY LATE SAT NIGHT...AND FROM THE FLORIDA BIG BEND AREA TO FAR EASTERN BAY OF CAMPECHE BY SUN EVENING. N WINDS OF 20-25 KT ARE EXPECTED TO FOLLOW IN ITS WAKE...GRADUALLY WEAKENING AND SHIFTING TO N-NE BY SUN OVER THE WESTERN GULF PORTION. SW N ATLC... WEAKENING RIDGE FROM 26N65W TO STRAITS OF FLORIDA WILL SHIFT NE OF AREA THROUGH TONIGHT IN RESPONSE TO THE ABOVE GULF OF MEXICO COLD FRONT WHICH EXTENDS NE TO ACROSS THE NW BAHAMAS AND TO BEYOND THE AREA AT 31N69W. WINDS NW OF THE FRONT ARE NE 20-25 KT WITH SEAS IN THE 7-10 FT. N OF 27N E OF FRONT...WINDS ARE SW 10-15 KT WITH SEAS IN THE 3-5 FT RANGE. THE COLD FRONT SHOULD ROUGHLY EXTEND FROM NEAR 26N65W TO WESTERN CUBA ALONG 80W BY THU MORNING AS IT WEAKENS...THEN IT WILL BECOME A FRONTAL TROUGH AS IT DISSIPATES JUST E OF THE AREA THU NIGHT AND FRI. WINDS N OF THE FRONT WILL BE FURTHER PROLONGED INTO SAT AS STRONG HIGH PRES FROM N OF THE REGION BUILDS SE ACROSS THE WATERS. THE HIGH WILL WEAKEN SUN AS IT SLIDES EASTWARD AS A COLD FRONT MOVES ACROSS THE SE U.S. CARIBBEAN AND TROPICAL N ATLC W OF 55W... HIGH PRES NE OF THE AREA MAINTAINS FRESH TO STRONG TRADES FROM THE TROPICAL N ATLC THROUGH THE EASTERN AND CENTRAL CARIBBEAN. HIGHEST WINDS CONTINUE JUST N OF THE COAST OF COLOMBIA AS INDICATED BY A FEW SHIP OBSERVATIONS WITH SPEEDS OF UP TO 25 KT. WINDS AND SEAS WILL DIMINISH THROUGH SUN AS THE PRES GRADIENT RELAXES WITH THE STRONGEST WINDS CONFINED TO NEAR THE COAST OF COLOMBIA. SEAS UP TO 12 FT OFF THE COAST OF COLOMBIA THROUGH EARLY TONIGHT. SEAS WILL SUBSIDE TO AROUND 4-6 FT BY THU THROUGH SUN WITH HIGHEST IN THE SW CARIBBEAN NEAR COAST OF COLOMBIA. A COLD FRONT MOVING THROUGH THE GULF OF MEXICO WILL STALL ACROSS THE YUCATAN CHANNEL SUN NIGHT WITH A PRE FRONTAL TROUGH MOVING INTO THE FAR NW CARIBBEAN. WARNINGS.. ATLC... .NONE. CARIBBEAN... .NONE. GULF OF MEXICO... .NONE. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT HTTP://WWW.HURRICANES.GOV/MARINE $$ FORECASTER AGUIRRE