000 AXNT20 KNHC 281712 TWDAT TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL 205 PM EDT MON AUG 28 2006 TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION FOR NORTH AMERICA...CENTRAL AMERICA...THE GULF OF MEXICO...THE CARIBBEAN SEA...NORTHEASTERN SECTIONS OF SOUTH AMERICA...AND THE 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 1645 UTC. ...SPECIAL FEATURE... THE CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM ERNESTO IS NEAR 20.3N 75.7W AT 28/1500 UTC OR 30 NM/55 KM WEST-NORTHWEST OF GUANTANAMO CUBA. ERNESTO IS MOVING NORTHWEST 9 KT. THE ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE IS 1006 MB. THE MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WIND SPEEDS ARE 35 KT WITH GUSTS TO 45 KT. PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST NHC FORECAST/ ADVISORY UNDER HEADERS MIATCMAT5/WTNT25 KNHC AND THE PUBLIC ADVISORY MIATCPAT5/WTNT35 KNHC FOR MORE DETAILS. T.S. ERNESTO MADE LANDFALL ON THE SOUTHEASTERN CUBAN COAST NEAR PLAYA CAZONAL...JUST WEST OF GUANTANAMO...AROUND 1200 UTC. THE CENTER IS NOW MOVING OVER THE MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN OF EXTREME EASTERN CUBA. SOME MORE WEAKENING IS LIKELY BEFORE THE CENTER MOVES OVER WATER AGAIN TO THE NORTH OF CUBA. RE-STRENGTHENING IS LIKELY IN A FAVORABLE UPPER-LEVEL ENVIRONMENT OF WEAK NORTHEASTERLY SHEAR ONCE THE CENTER EMERGES OVER WATER. NUMEROUS STRONG SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE OCCURRING FROM 18N TO 21N BETWEEN 73W AND 75W WHICH BASICALLY MEANS OVER THE WINDWARD PASSAGE AND SOUTHEASTERN CUBA...AND WESTERN HAITI. HIGH LEVEL CLOUDS ARE CURVING ANTICYCLONICALLY ACROSS THE NORTHEASTERN CARIBBEAN SEA ISLANDS WEST OF 60W...TOWARD THE CENTRAL CARIBBEAN SEA...REACHING NORTHERN COASTAL COLOMBIA. ...TROPICAL WAVES... AN ATLANTIC OCEAN TROPICAL WAVE IS ALONG 38W SOUTH OF 23N MOVING WEST 15 TO 20 KT. A 1010 MB LOW PRESSURE CENTER IS ALONG THE WAVE FROM 17N TO 18N. BROAD CYCLONIC FLOW IN THE LOW CLOUD FIELD ON VISIBLE SATELLITE IMAGERY COVERS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN WATERS FROM 14N TO 21N BETWEEN 33W AND 47W. SHOWERS ARE POSSIBLE IN THE CLOUDINESS AROUND THE LOW CENTER AND WAVE. ...THE ITCZ... ITCZ 14N16W 9N35W 8N40W 7N50W 6N59W. ISOLATED TO WIDELY SCATTERED MODERATE SHOWERS/POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORMS WITHIN 60 TO 120 NM ON EITHER SIDE OF 10N14W 12N20W 9N30W 7N42W. ...DISCUSSION... THE GULF OF MEXICO... WATCH OUT FOR T.S. ERNESTO. IT IS INLAND OVER SOUTHEASTERN CUBA RIGHT NOW. IT IS POSSIBLE THAT IT MAY MOVE AWAY FROM CUBA INTO THE STRAITS OF FLORIDA DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS OR SO...AND RE-DEVELOP INTO A CATEGORY ONE HURRICANE BEFORE HITTING SOUTH FLORIDA. A MIDDLE TO UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE CENTER IS IN THE NORTHWESTERN YUCATAN PENINSULA. CYCLONIC FLOW AROUND THIS LOW CENTER COVERS INTERIOR MEXICO AND THE GULF WATERS FROM 16N TO 28N BETWEEN THE YUCATAN CHANNEL AND 96W. ISOLATED MODERATE SHOWERS AND POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORMS STRETCH FROM THE NORTHWESTERN CARIBBEAN SEA/YUCATAN CHANNEL TO 26N AND WESTWARD TO 22N95W AROUND THE NORTHEASTERN SEMICIRCLE. SCATTERED STRONG SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE RIGHT UP AGAINST THE MEXICO COAST IN THE SOUTHWESTERN GULF OF MEXICO BETWEEN 95W AND 97W FROM 18N TO 20N. A MIDDLE TO UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE CENTER AND TROUGH ARE IN CENTRAL MEXICO. THE LOW CENTER IS NEAR 24N103W. CYCLONIC FLOW AROUND THE TROUGH COVERS THE EASTERN HALF OF INTERIOR MEXICO. UPPER LEVEL ANTICYCLONIC FLOW IS NORTH OF 31N75W 28N84W 31N91W. PART OF THE ANTICYCLONIC FLOW WHICH IS OVER MAINLY THE CAROLINAS/ GEORGIA AND ALABAMA COVERS PARTS OF NORTHERN FLORIDA AND THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE. ISOLATED MODERATE SHOWERS ARE IN THE NORTHEASTERN CORNER OF THE GULF WATERS IN AN AREA OF UPPER LEVEL DIFFLUENT FLOW. THE CARIBBEAN SEA... T.S. ERNESTO IS INLAND OVER SOUTHEASTERN CUBA RIGHT NOW... FORECAST TO MOVE INTO THE STRAITS OF FLORIDA AND RE-DEVELOP INTO A CATEGORY ONE HURRICANE DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS OR SO. HIGH LEVEL CLOUDS ARE CURVING ANTICYCLONICALLY ACROSS THE NORTHEASTERN CARIBBEAN SEA ISLANDS WEST OF 60W...TOWARD THE CENTRAL CARIBBEAN SEA...REACHING NORTHERN COASTAL COLOMBIA. MIDDLE TO UPPER LEVEL CYCLONIC FLOW NORTH OF 15N WEST OF 82W IS BEING DRAWN TOWARD THE NORTHWESTERN YUCATAN PENINSULA LOW PRESSURE CENTER. A SMALL AND WEAKENING AREA OF UPPER LEVEL HIGH ANTICYCLONIC FLOW IS NEAR 20N80W. WARMING CLOUD TOP TEMPERATURES AND WEAKENING PRECIPITATION FROM 13N TO 15N BETWEEN 80W AND 82W. THE ATLANTIC OCEAN... A MIDDLE TO UPPER LEVEL TROUGH PASSES THROUGH 32N53W TO 27N57W TO A LOW CENTER NEAR 24N60W TO 23N64W 26N70W TO A SMALL-SIZED LOW PRESSURE CENTER OVER THE BAHAMAS NEAR 24N78W. THE 24N78W LOW CENTER IS JUST NEAR THE PERIPHERY OF THE UPPER LEVEL ANTICYCLONIC FLOW ON TOP OF T.S. ERNESTO. CYCLONIC FLOW TO THE NORTH OF THIS LOW CENTER COVERS THE ATLANTIC WATERS TO 27N BETWEEN 70W AND 82W IN THE STRAITS OF FLORIDA. UPPER LEVEL ANTICYCLONIC FLOW APPROACHES 27N FROM THE NORTH...ASSOCIATED WITH A HIGH PRESSURE CENTER WHOSE ANTICYCLONIC FLOW COVERS THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES. A MIDDLE TO UPPER LEVEL TROUGH EXTENDS FROM A LOW PRESSURE CENTER NEAR 32N27W TO 27N32W... TO A LOW PRESSURE CENTER NEAR 21N37W TO 10N45W. THE TROUGH IS SURROUNDED COMPLETELY BY MIDDLE TO UPPER LEVEL DRY AIR. UPPER LEVEL SOUTHEASTERLY WIND FLOW MOVES FROM THE ITCZ NEAR 40W NORTHWESTWARD INTO THE SOUTHEASTERN CARIBBEAN SEA...AND THEN OVER THE TOP OF THE 32N27W 10N45W TROUGH. A MIDDLE TO UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE CENTER IS NEAR 31N13W JUST WEST OF THE COAST OF MOROCCO. CYCLONIC FLOW AROUND THE LOW CENTER COVERS THE AREA FROM 26N TO 34N BETWEEN 6W AND 20W. $$ MT