136 FXUS61 KCTP 170132 AFDCTPArea Forecast Discussion National Weather Service State College PA 932 PM EDT Tue Sep 16 2025
.SYNOPSIS... * Increasing clouds across the region tonight and Wednesday with cooler temperatures Wednesday afternoon. * Periods of light rain will continue across southeastern Pennsylvania through Wednesday night; accumulations generally 0.1-0.25 inches. * Dry conditions return areawide on Thursday and will persist through the weekend.
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.NEAR TERM /THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... A coastal low pressure system is currently located off the coast of Virginia and continues to produce a shield of cloudy skies extending into northern PA this evening. Periods of light rain continue to rotate counter clockwise around the low, bringing occasional showers to portions of southeast Pennsylvania. Very dry air at the surface characterized by dewpoints in the mid 50s has limited the amount of rainfall making it to the surface thus far.
Overnight, clouds will continue to expand northwestward as rain continues. Low clouds are progged to reach I-80/I-99 by daybreak, limiting fog potential south and east of there. Farther north, some valley fog formation is expected once again. Lows will range from the upper 40s in northwest PA to near 60 in the southeast.
On Wednesday, thickening clouds and persistent easterly flow will keep temperatures significantly cooler than recent days east of the mountains. Highs should stay in the upper 60s to near 70s along south/east of I-99/I-80, while locations farther west soar into the 80s where skies should be mostly sunny or partly cloudy. Periods of rain will continue to affect southeast PA on Wednesday as dewpoints gradually increase. Dewpoints will crest the 60F mark for the first time in quite awhile as tropical moisture swirls into the region accompanied by PWATs over 1.5". If you look at radar on Wednesday, you may see returns extending into northern PA (north of I-80). Dry air at the surface should prevent most of the rain from reaching the surface there, though. Rainfall totals by Wednesday evening should remain below 0.5" for most, and little to no accumulation is expected along south/east of I-80/I-99.
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.SHORT TERM /WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY/... The surface low will move east of the area Wednesday night as surface high pressure beneath a blocking ridge of high pressure works its way back into the region. Cool afternoon highs and relatively high dewpoints combined with clearing skies in the wake of the low will promote widespread fog formation into Thursday morning. Satellite imagery over Central PA at daybreak will be quite striking as most valleys are blanketed with fog.
Thursday and Friday will be a continuation of what we`ve seen for a majority of the past couple weeks with plenty of sunshine, seasonably mild temperatures, and light winds. It will take a little while for the moisture in southeast PA to be replaced by a drier airmass, so expect the air to feel a bit humid still on Thursday. Highs will generally be in the 80s with lows in the upper 40s (NW) to lower 60s (SE). A backdoor, moisture-deprived cold front will sag south into northern Pennsylvania Friday afternoon, with an increase in cloud cover north of US-6 being the only noteworthy aspect of its arrival. Drier air awaits in its wake...
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.LONG TERM /FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY/... On Friday night, the aforementioned backdoor cold front will slide through Pennsylvania with a strong 1028mb high surging in behind it. Dewpoints will plummet by Saturday morning, supporting a return to below-normal overnight temperatures with clear skies and calm winds. Surface high pressure will set up off the New England Coast for the weekend, ensuring moist southeast flow and tranquil weather. Highs will tick down a few degrees for the weekend, with highs in the 70s and lows in the 50s most likely at this time.
Heading into next week, high pressure will begin to lose its grip on the region as an upper trough tries to disrupt the persistent ridge of high pressure aloft. Still plenty of uncertainty on how much, if any, precipitation will get into Pennsylvania but southerly flow ahead of the approaching system will support continued warmer than average temperatures for the start of Astronomical fall.
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.AVIATION /01Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... Current satellite/radar as of 2320Z outlines a fair area of high-level clouds general at or above 25,000 ft with rain across mainly southeastern Pennsylvania (MDT/LNS). Dew point depressions remain relatively high with low-level dry air limiting the amount of precipitation outside of the heaviest bands this evening, which are generally expected to stay out of the airfields. Despite this, have continue a PROB30 over the next 1-2 hrs at LNS due to some continued development across the region with the bulk of precipitation south of MDT.
Most recent HREF/RAP/GLAMP guidance indicates a brief period of dry conditions at the airfields overnight; however, scattered showers are progged by model guidance in this timeframe. Thus, confidence remains low with respect to the precipitation forecast overnight at MDT/LNS as showers will have some potential to go over the airfield between 00Z-12Z Wed. Better signals for precipitation come throughout the morning hours on Wednesday and continuing into expand slowly north/westward with the closest approach of the coastal low. Model guidance indicated MDT/LNS share respectable (40-50%) chances for rainfall with scattered coverage limiting chances at IPT/UNV/AOO closer to the 10-30% range, thus have limited mentions for the 00Z TAF package. Some instability will be present; however, lower confidence given easterly flow and coverage of TSRA at MDT/LNS, thus no mentions this cycle.
Given the aforementioned easterly flow, lower ceilings are also expected across the southern tier of Pennsylvania. Recent model guidance has tanked MDT/LNS further down, which is plausible given increasing low-level moisture from the Atlantic. Recent HREF guidance indicated anywhere between 40-60% of IFR restrictions or below throughout the afternoon/evening hours at MDT/LNS, thus have began mentions of IFR thresholds in the 00Z TAF. Elsewhere, MVFR will be possible (30-40%) for brief periods at AOO/IPT; however, less convincing signals for IFR mentions based on model guidance at this time.
Outlook...
Thu...Generally VFR.
Fri-Sun...VFR with AM valley fog.
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.CLIMATE... Astronomical fall officially begins with the autumnal equinox on Monday, September 22, 2025 @ 2:19 p.m. EDT. The Autumn 2025 season will last 89 days, 20 hours, and 43 minutes. Daylight saving time will end just after Halloween with clocks falling back at 2 a.m. Sunday, November 2, 2025.
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.CTP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... None.
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SYNOPSIS...Banghoff NEAR TERM...Banghoff SHORT TERM...Banghoff LONG TERM...Banghoff AVIATION...NPB CLIMATE...Steinbugl
NWS CTP Office Area Forecast Discussion