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Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Medford, OR
Issued by NWS Medford, OR
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419 FXUS66 KMFR 172150 AFDMFR Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Medford OR 250 PM PDT Wed Jul 17 2024 .DISCUSSION...Aside from a bit of coastal stratus, skies are clear over the warning area this afternoon with nothing on the KMAX 88-d. The upper trough that was the instigator for the thunderstorm activity over the last couple days has moved north into Portland`s and Pendleton`s areas with some ongoing lightning up there. Plenty of new fire detections seen in satellite imagery as well from Near Diamond Lake northward. Another hotspot seen in Modoc county off Hwy 395 in the Warners but little if any smoke there. Columns on the new area fires tilting pretty good in gusty W-SW upper winds in the wake of the departing trough. Southerly flow aloft will continue through Thursday and Friday as high pressure remains inland centered near the 4-corners, nudging westward, and a trough remains offshore. A short wave in the south flow will ride up the CA coast Friday night into Saturday with some increasing moisture and instability over the region by Saturday afternoon. Afternoon highs should rise several degrees warmer Saturday. Have collaborated with neighboring offices to introduce a slight chance (10-20%) of thunderstorms over northern California and the east side and northern California then, spreading into SW Oregon Saturday night. Thunder threat from this shortwave should clear to the east by later Sunday with temps cooling 4-8 degrees. Little change into mid week. Stavish && ..AVIATION...17/18Z TAFS...VFR conditions in all locations with the exception of MVFR ceilings over Coos county and extreme western Douglas county. A tightly wound up cloud vortex just offshore of Cape Blanco (K5S6) is moving northeastward toward the coastline and may keep MVFR ceilings persistent through the afternoon along the coast from K5S6 northward. At least model guidance seems to think so. Have kept MVFR ceilings for said coastal areas for the duration of the TAF forecast period. Otherwise, VFR will persist with mainly clear skies and breezy afternoon winds. -Sargeant && .MARINE...Updated 230 PM Wednesday, July 17, 2024...Weak low pressure offshore has disrupted the thermal trough pattern. Weak winds and low seas will persist into Friday morning. A weak thermal trough is expected to return Friday, then strengthen this weekend, with the strongest winds south of Cape Blanco. Advisory strength northerly winds and steep seas are possible Saturday, then gales and steep to very steep seas are possible early next week. -DW/Sargeant && .FIRE WEATHER...Issued 200 PM Wednesday July 17, 2024...A dry and stable southwest flow sets up over the area today through Friday with no concerns for thunderstorms. However, afternoon relative humidities will trend lower for most interior locations with values in the single digits for portions of the East Side through Friday along with the typical gusty afternoon and early evening breezes. This will result in near critical conditions for portions of Fire zones 624, 625 and 285, but at this time were not expecting the combination of wind and RH to result in Red Flag conditions. Were already seeing signs of that from an emerging fire called the Trail Fire which is located near Diamond Lake just north of the highway 130 and highway 230 junction. We`ll have to keep a close watch on thunderstorm potential this weekend. Saturday, an upper trough will move up from the south just off the California coast and could tap into some monsoonal moisture on Saturday with a southeast flow aloft. At the same time, the upper trough could become negatively tilted Saturday afternoon into Saturday night. Based in part on pattern recognition, this could be problematic in that we could see storms break out mid to late Saturday afternoon in portions of fire zones 280, 281 and 284. Saturday night, there`s good agreement the axis of the upper trough is still south of our area which heightens the concern for nocturnal storms west of the Cascades Saturday night. Many times the models will not show signs of unstable conditions with this type of pattern, then "wham", something breaks out. It could be a situation in which the instability is elevated, and thus the convection will be elevated as well. Not saying this is a slam dunk, but at the same time it cannot be discounted. Of note, some evidence does point towards increasing mid level moisture moving into the westside Saturday night. The upper trough axis shifts north during the day Sunday. Any threat for storms could be confined to the early morning hours over the northwest part of our area, then shifting north late Sunday morning through Sunday afternoon with a drier and stable southwest flow moving into the area. The exception could be in portions of Fire zone 625 where there is a low end chance (12%) or less of an isolated storms late Sunday afternoon, but mid level moisture and trigger is lacking, thus odds are nothing will happen there. Monday, a dry and stable southwest flow returns with an upper trough north of our area. It will be cooler with gusty afternoon and early evening breezes for the interior westside valleys and east of the Cascades. -Petrucelli && .MFR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OR...None. CA...None. PACIFIC COASTAL WATERS...None. && $$