textproduct: Grand Rapids

KEY MESSAGES

- Mostly dry through Wednesday with moderating temperatures

- Chance of rain on Thursday

- Drying out for Friday and beyond with warming temperatures

DISCUSSION

Issued at 235 PM EDT Sun Mar 22 2026

- Mostly dry through Wednesday with moderating temperatures

We are seeing an uptick in radar returns this afternoon as expected, with some light rain reaching the ground at some isolated locations. This scenario is a bit disjointed as the sfc cold front moved through earlier and is over Indiana and Ohio as of 18z. There is just enough moisture left in the column for some forcing via a short wave and some right rear quad upper jet dynamics moving in to act on. Many locations along and south of I-96 will some some rain, but it will be quite light with less than a tenth of an inch expected. This should clear the forecast area to the south just after 00z this evening as much drier air moves in behind the wave and jet streak.

There may be a few light flurries late tonight and Monday morning as the main short wave passes through the area. 850 mb temps drop to the lower negative teens, which would be just enough instability over the lake for some lake effect. Flurries will be about it though with a flow from the NNE being offshore, and inversion heights being quite low with ridging building in quickly.

After the wave moves by early Monday, we will be rather quiet here through Wednesday. The northern and southern branches of the jet will be well north and south of the area respectively. In addition, the column will be very dry as PWATS will be around 0.20 inches starting Monday afternoon. They will inch up a tiny amount through Wednesday, but will not be enough along with little to no forcing to act on it through Tuesday. A weak front Wednesday dropping through will bring a small chance of some rain. Temperatures will moderate after Monday as 850 mb temps increase from around -11C Monday to +5C on Wednesday.

- Chance of rain on Thursday

The best chance of rain looks to come late Thursday and Thursday night with another weak system passing through in the northern stream well north of the area. The difference with this system that brings a better chance of rain is that the flow from the Gulf is better established ahead of this system, and saturates the column better.

- Drying out for Friday and beyond with warming temperatures

The pattern for the end of the week looks like it will be a similar repeat of the pattern of the next few days.

That repeat pattern starts with the system late Thursday and Thursday night moving south of the area. In the wake of the frontal passage, we will see quite a dry air mass advect in on the front side of a Canadian ridge building in. The flow around this ridge will also tap some much cooler weather beginning on Friday as we see 850 mb temperatures drop to around -11C once again.

We will see the flow gradually come around from the south by later next weekend as the ridge moves by. Surface temperatures will recover once again into the 50s by Sunday as 850 mb temperature increase to +2C or so.

AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z TUESDAY/

Issued at 750 PM EDT Sun Mar 22 2026

MVFR ceilings - in the 1-2 kft range - will persist overnight at all West Michigan TAF sites, as shallow cool/moist air continues to advect southward across the region. Light post- frontal showers along the I-94 corridor /vicinity of AZO-BTL-JXN/ will diminish by 02Z.

High pressure approaching from the west early Monday, coupled with mixing from March sun, will steadily lift cloud bases and eventually thin the cloud deck. The trend will be for MVFR clouds early to give way to VFR conditions with just scattered 3-4 kft clouds by early-mid afternoon

Generally light north winds tonight will become northwest Monday. By late morning or early afternoon, vertical mixing along with a decent pressure gradient will yield wind gusts of around 20 kt area-wide.

MARINE

Issued at 235 PM EDT Sun Mar 22 2026

We are going to be extending the current Small Craft Advisory out a bit in time so that the northern half of the nearshore expires at 18z Monday, and the southern half expires at 00z Tuesday.

These changes are based on their forecast wave heights lingering longer before diminishing. Winds are forecast to remain up through Monday morning, before everything else.

Once this current SCA ends on Monday, we are looking at sub-SCA conditions likely to hold until late Tuesday night or Wednesday. Winds will ramp up then behind a weak front that passes through, and brings a decent offshore flow over the area.

GRR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

MI...None. MARINE...Small Craft Advisory until 8 PM EDT Monday for LMZ844>846. Small Craft Advisory until 2 PM EDT Monday for LMZ847>849.