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Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Las Vegas, NV
Issued by NWS Las Vegas, NV
096 FXUS65 KVEF 150843 AFDVEF Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 143 AM PDT Thu Aug 15 2024 .SYNOPSIS...Dry conditions and afternoon breezes will continue through Friday, along with near normal temperatures. Mohave, Lincoln, and Clark counties will see monsoonal moisture and chances for afternoon showers and thunderstorms return over the weekend. Farther west, continued dry and breezy conditions will lead to elevated fire risk over the weekend, with moisture possibly returning next week. && .SHORT TERM...through Sunday night. Early morning satellite loop showed clear skies areawide. Surface obs showed temperatures and dewpoints both a few degrees lower than 24 hours ago. The break from monsoonal moisture will continue through today, then moisture will start to seep back into the southeast zones Friday as the mid level flow turns more southerly. This will lead to thunderstorm chances returning to Mohave, Clark, and Lincoln counties both Saturday and Sunday. Farther west, where the dry air remains in place and south to southwest winds will gust to around 30 mph in the afternoons, the main concern will be wildfire risk. As noted by previous shifts, these conditions will be flirting with Red Flag Warning criteria. A coordination call is planned for later this morning, so will defer any watch or warning decision to the day crew. Through Sunday, expect no meaningful day to day change in temperatures, except in areas where thunderstorms develop early in the day. .LONG TERM...Monday through Wednesday. There remains uncertainty heading into next week regarding the amount of moisture that hangs around the area. ECMWF ensemble means indicate a westward shift of the upper-level area of high pressure currently centered over the southern Plains. This would cut off the monsoonal moisture flow and return above-average temperatures to the area. However, the GEFS holds onto moisture well into next work week, with daily afternoon precipitation chances in northwestern Arizona and the mountains of southeastern Nevada thanks to a persistent southerly flow aloft. The NBM returns temperatures to 5-7 degrees above seasonal normals next week, which hints that the NBM is favoring the ECMWF solution. Confidence will increase as we approach the weekend. && .AVIATION...For Harry Reid...South-southwest winds will persist into this evening with frequent gusts around 20 knots from 18Z-03Z. Skies will remain clear. For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast California...South-southwest winds 10-15 knots can be expected across much of the region with gusts 20-25 knots during the afternoon hours. Winds at KBIH will be generally light through the afternoon, but occasional south winds up to 8 knots are possible after 22z. Mostly clear skies across the region. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating procedures. && $$ SHORT TERM...Morgan LONG TERM...Soulat AVIATION...Gorelow For more forecast information...see us on our webpage: https://weather.gov/lasvegas or follow us on Facebook and Twitter