000 AGXX40 KNHC 121803 MIMATS Marine Weather Discussion NWS National Hurricane Center Miami FL 103 PM EST Fri Jan 12 2018 Marine Weather Discussion for the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea, and Tropical North Atlantic from 07N to 19N between 55W and 64W and the Southwest North Atlantic including the Bahamas ...GULF OF MEXICO... A cold front that currently extends from the Florida Panhandle to the Bay of Campeche will quickly move SE and exit the Gulf basin tonight. Gale force winds over the western Gulf behind the front will diminish to about 20 to 25 kt by late this afternoon. These 20 to 25 kt winds will spread over the eastern Gulf behind the front this afternoon and evening. Seas up to 17 ft over the western Gulf will subside from west to east and under 8 ft W of 90W by midday Saturday. Meanwhile, fresh to occasionally strong northerly winds will prevail over the eastern Gulf through Sunday as a reinforcing cold front crosses the eastern gulf Saturday afternoon. These winds will support seas to 9 ft. High pressure will build over the northern Gulf briefly early next week which will support gentle winds over the northern part of the basin, to fresh over the southeast part of the basin, moderate elsewhere. Yet another cold front will quickly cross the Gulf Tuesday night and Wednesday with strong winds behind the front. ...CARIBBEAN SEA AND TROPICAL N ATLANTIC FROM 07N TO 19N BETWEEN 55W AND 64W... Strong high pressure in the west-central Atlantic continues to support fresh to strong trade winds in the tropical N Atlc and E Caribbean. This pattern will continue through Sunday. Thereafter, winds will drop below 20 kt over the E Caribbean and tropical Atlantic waters. However, large swell will continue to propagate over the tropical Atlantic waters through early next week, possibly reaching the Atlantic exposures of the Leeward Islands at times. A cold front in the Gulf of Mexico will reach the Yucatan Channel this evening, extend from central Cuba to eastern Honduras Sat morning, then stall from E Cuba to Costa Rica Sat night. Fresh to locally strong N winds are expected behind the front Sat. A secondary push of cold air will increase winds to 20-30 kt west of the stationary front Sun. Winds will slowly diminish Mon and Tue as high pressure north of the area weakens and the front dissipates. Fresh to strong nocturnal pulses of winds are expected to occur over the NE coast of Colombia the next several nights. ...SW N ATLANTIC INCLUDING THE BAHAMAS... A moderately tight pressure gradient over forecast waters between high pressure to the northeast and lower pressure in the Caribbean will continue to support a large area of fresh to locally strong trade winds west of 65W through tonight. The strong high will shift eastward tonight, and a cold front in the western Gulf of Mexico will lose its ferocity in the eastern Gulf as it approaches the Florida peninsula this evening. It will move into the Atlc tonight with fresh to locally strong winds on either side of the frontal boundary. The front will stall out Saturday night through Sunday night from about 31N72W to eastern Cuba. A reinforcing surge of colder air will enter the region behind the front Sunday, helping to expand the coverage of strong winds west of the front. High pressure east of the region will weaken Monday, allowing for the front to resume moving eastward Monday and Monday night, moving east of 65W by Tuesday. Winds will diminish below 20 kt Monday night, with seas dropping below 8 ft by Tuesday night. Another cold front with accompanying strong NW winds will reach the waters east of Florida on Wednesday. $$ .WARNINGS...Any changes impacting coastal NWS offices will be coordinated through AWIPS II Collaboration Chat, or by telephone: .GULF OF MEXICO... .GMZ011...NW GULF INCLUDING STETSON BANK... Gale Warning today. .GMZ013...N CENTRAL GULF INCLUDING FLOWER GARDEN BANKS MARINE SANCTUARY... Gale Warning today. .GMZ017...W CENTRAL GULF FROM 22N TO 26N W OF 94W... Gale Warning today. .GMZ019...CENTRAL GULF FROM 22N TO 26N BETWEEN 87W AND 94W... Gale Warning today. .GMZ023...SW GULF S OF 22N W OF 94W... Gale Warning today. .CARIBBEAN SEA AND TROPICAL N ATLANTIC FROM 07N TO 19N BETWEEN 55W AND 64W... None. .SW N ATLANTIC INCLUDING THE BAHAMAS... None. $$ *For detailed zone descriptions, please visit: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/abouttafbprod.shtml#OWF Note: gridded marine forecasts are available in the National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD) at: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/marine/grids.php For additional information, please visit: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/marine $$ .Forecaster Latto. National Hurricane Center.