Public weather briefing
Expect a warm, sunny week in Madison for the next week with temperatures in the late 70s and minor cloud
cover later into the upcoming weekend. Temperatures tonight
through next Sunday night will are expected to reach a low of 50. Winds this week are not expected to
surpass 10 mph, but are expected to strengthen on Tuesday and Wednesday
compared to tonight. All winds are expected blow southward to west
southwestward. Tonight and tomorrow will experience clear skies with highs in
the high 70s and lows in the low 50s. Wednesday through Sunday are expected to
have a similar temperature profile, but are also associated with scattered fair
weather cumulus clouds, which are unlikely to precipitate. There is a small
chance of rain on Thursday, so be sure to pack a light jacket! Fortunately,
much of the precipitation is expected to be located in Northern Minnesota and
Southern Illinois, just missing Wisconsin. Similar conditions are expected for
the upcoming weekend.
Forecast
Tonight. Low near 50 degrees with clear skies
and low winds.
Tuesday. High of 78 with mostly sunny skies. Very
moderate winds up until 10 mph.
Tuesday night. Low of 55 with clear skies and
low winds.
Wednesday. Scattered clouds, but overall a warm,
sunny day with temperatures around 80 degrees and moderate winds up to 10 mph.
Thursday. Warm, sunny day with minor cloud
cover. High around 80. Small chance of rain-around 30%.
Outlook for Friday through Sunday. Warm weekend with temperatures frequently in
the late 70s for all three days. Lows in the early 50s with mostly clear
nights. [CONFIDENCE: MEDIUM]
Forecast Discussion
We are located on the eastward side of a surface anticyclone, hence the
lack of expected precipitation for the Madison area. A surface cyclone as of
Monday morning was found located over Utah and is expected to propagate just to
the south of Wisconsin. There is about a 30% chance that precipitation
associated with this anticyclone will reach Madison, WI on Thursday, however it
is likely that this feature will be advected to pass through southern Illinois
instead. In the meantime, well-spaced isobars associated with the anticyclonic
system create conditions for low winds, if any. Temperatures are expected to
stay warm, as cooler air from Canada is not expected to spill over US
territory, save for some slightly chilly weather (~50 degrees) over the
northern edge of the Montana/North Dakota border. The cyclone this air is
associated with is not expected to advect southward enough to Wisconsin, reinforcing
the high temperatures expected for the next week.
Great briefing and discussion, Corinne! You definitely understood what is appropriate for a weather briefing vs. a forecast discussion. In particular, great description of the synoptic state over Madison (east of a surface anticyclone). A few minor suggestions: I think when you said 'late 70's' you were thinking 'upper 70's'? And instead of 'well-spaced isobars' you could say "due to a weak pressure gradient associated with the broad anticyclone". Also to be even more specific you could explain why an anticyclone means little changes of precipitation (sinking air). Also, saying 'advected' suggests a very particular phenomenon, which is likely associated with the movement of the cyclone as you described, but the cyclone is also developing as it moves. So you can just say 'this feature will move into the region'/ 'this feature is expected to move quickly eastward'. But overall excellent job here!
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