Area forecast discussion...correction long term National Weather Service Lincoln Illinois 329 am CDT Tuesday may 21 2013 Discussion... issued 330 am CDT Tuesday may 21 2013 Short term...today through Friday Mesoscale convective system that brought heavy rains...frequent lightning and several severe wind damage reports to central/eastern Illinois during Monday evening has weakened eastward across Indiana with lingering showers and isolated thunderstorms southeast of a Champaign to Springfield line and tracking NE. 998 mb low pressure over NE South Dakota with its warm front over northern WI/lower Michigan and its cold front over western Iowa...northwest MO...southeast Kansas and central OK. Strong 555 dm 500 mb low was over NE South Dakota and has not moved much past 24 hours. One more very warm and humid day expected over central and southeast Illinois with highs in the low to middle 80s as some sunshine returns during the morning and early afternoon. Showers and isolated thunderstorms to diminish east of I-55 during the morning and refire up later this afternoon and evening. Storm Prediction Center has shifted slight risk of severe storms a bit further east and generally east of the Illinois River valley late this afternoon and evening. Per Storm Prediction Center day1 outlook discussion...SW flow will be in place today from the middle MS valley NE into the Great Lakes region. Surface low pressure is forecast to move eastward across the upper MS valley with a corridor of low level moisture extending north-northeast from the lower Ohio Valley into lower Michigan. Surface dewpoints across central and eastern Illinois should be in the middle to upper 60s resulting in moderate destabilization. Model forecasts initiate storms by middle afternoon along the instability axis with storms moving northeastward across the region. Forecast soundings along the instability axis west of Detroit and north of Indianapolis at 21z/4 PM show MLCAPE values in the 1000 to 2000 j/kg range with steep low-level lapse rates and unidirectional wind profiles. This environment should be favorable for wind damage as cells increase in coverage during this afternoon. Several model forecasts show an enhanced severe threat across Southern Lower Michigan to the southeast of the surface low and on the nose of the low-level jet. For this reason...an enhanced wind damage threat (30%) will be possible with bowing line-segments in lower Michigan late this afternoon. Large hail and a few tornadoes (5%) may also occur with the more intense cells. Central and eastern Illinois has 15% risk of damaging wind gusts and large hail and 2% risk of a tornado late this afternoon and evening. Strong cutoff low to move east and be 557 dm 500 low over northwest Iowa by dawn Wednesday with 1004 mb surface low moving east/weakening into NE Iowa and northern Illinois. Continue high chances of showers and thunderstorms through tonight with the slight risk of severe storms east of the Illinois River valley through the evening. Cold front to move east through Illinois Wednesday morning as surface low moves into southeast lower Michigan by sunset Wednesday. This to keep a good chance of showers and a few thunderstorms around on Wednesday with likely chances over eastern Illinois. Storm Prediction Center has 5% risk of severe storms near the Wabash River Wednesday while slight chance of severe storms is from Ohio east. Highs Wednesday in the middle to upper 70s with Lawrenceville near 80f. 562 dm 500 mb low to over into northern Indiana Thursday morning and continue chances of showers and mostly cloudy skies with cooler temperatures in the upper 60s and lower 70s for highs Thursday and mildest from Springfield to Terre Haute south. Upper level low/trough pulls away from Illinois Thursday night and Friday as 1031 mb Canadian high pressure settles into the western Great Lakes and Illinois. This to bring more sunshine but cool temperatures with highs in the upper 60s to around 70f after lows Thursday night in the middle to upper 40s over central Illinois and lower 50s southeast Illinois. Long term...Friday night through Monday Upper level ridging into the Great Plains late this week and models still showing a disturbance ridging over the upper level ridge with quantitative precipitation forecast but differ on timing on position of this disturbance. Have slight chance of convection over the Illinois River valley after midnight Friday night. Then 20-40% chance of convection over central Illinois Sat through Monday while southeast Illinois appears to stay drier Sat and Sat night and Monday. High pressure over the Great Lakes region Memorial Day weekend will tend to keep areas NE of central Illinois drier as well. Temperatures to gradually modify from Sat through Monday with highs in the middle to upper 70s Memorial Day. 07 && Aviation... issued 109 am CDT Tuesday may 21 2013 Most intense convection along outflow boundary has weakened considerably as its moved into southeast sections of County Warning Area...and over the next few hours elevated...and generally light...convection will be tapering off along and east of a bmi-Dec line. Some lighter elevated showers working into eastern Missouri should return to the area during the predawn hours...and will also need to keep an eye on some elevated convection refiring as low level S flow intensifies and taps residual instability but for now have held these out of the tafs. Once the heavier convection exits east tafs by 08z...VFR conditions should prevail with ceilings at or above 8kft...with perhaps a bit of St forming during the predawn hours and have hinted at that with scattered 3kft. Not many changes made to forecasts for later today...with scattered cumulus forming by middle morning. Due to uncertainty of timing/location of convective initiation...will let next shift monitor trends before introducing next round of storms. Truett && Ilx watches/warnings/advisories... none. && $$