May 24, 2013
...A short duration light freeze is expected across parts of south
central Georgia and the Florida Big Bend tonight...
NEAR TERM [Through Tonight]...
The 18 UTC regional surface analysis showed the cold front that
moved through our forecast area last night was south of South FL,
while a 1027 mb high pressure ridge (centered over the northwest
Gulf of Mexico) was building east along the Gulf Coast. There was
also a cold front diving rapidly southeastward into OK and MO.
Vapor imagery and upper air data showed a broad trough over much of
the eastern CONUS, with plenty of dry air throughout the atmospheric
column.
With the ridge building in quickly, surface winds will likely
become calm shortly after sunset. This will allow for rapid
cooling, and a light freeze is likely at our normally colder
sites (away from the beaches, relatively "open" areas, and away from
larger cities) across the Florida Big Bend and South Central GA.
Even for those areas that don`t quite reach freezing, frost will be
possible. The main limiting factor (which will prevent a deeper
freeze) is the potential for surface winds to increase slightly
before dawn, ahead of a dry cold front (mentioned above, currently
moving through OK & MO) just to our north.
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