


Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Juneau, AK
Issued by NWS Juneau, AK
750 FXAK67 PAJK 101408 AFDAJK Southeast Alaska Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Juneau AK 608 AM AKDT Sun Aug 10 2025 .SHORT TERM... Downward trend through this afternoon as the surface low has both weakened into an open wave trough and has begun to push into British Columbia. Behind the wave, ridging aloft is causing pressure rises of around 1 mb per hour with predominantly westerly wind aloft. This westerly wind is key to areas expected to have the highest chances at rain this morning and afternoon. Looking for west facing mountains to have the highest rain chances from orographic lifting processes. However, looking at satellite, a big swath of dry air is pushing in from the west as well, which will erode away precipitation chances today. Therefore, highest chances of precipitation are this morning, with accumulations less than an inch. Looking towards tonight, another surge of moisture looks to push over the panhandle, primarily aimed between Port Alexander and Elfin Cove to begin with, then sliding south through Monday morning. For more information, see the Hydrology section. .LONG TERM... Key messages: - Lingering light rain into Tuesday from a quick moving system to start the week. - Winds on a downward swing across the inner channels Tuesday/Wednesday. - Ridge builds in the gulf through midweek with drier conditions across the panhandle Tuesday and Wednesday. - Rain to Details: Continuing from the short term, the path of the fast moving system on Monday will lead to increased winds in the inner channels once more before gradually decreasing. Winds in the gulf will pick up out of the southwest once more reaching up to strong breeze (23 - 27 knots) before gradually dropping to fresh breeze (17 - 21 knots) as a ridge builds over the gulf and flow along the outer coast turns northwesterly. This surface ridge coupled with an upper level ridge will bring drier weather for Tuesday and Wednesday across the panhandle, along with less cloud cover and warmer daytime highs up to around 70, particularly for the southern panhandle. Model spread reigns supreme for late next week, but as of this discussion, sometime Thursday looks like when we can expect rain and cloud cover to make their presence know again with a potential low forming in the gulf. && .AVIATION...Another Less than ideal flying weather day is in store for SE AK, though conditions will at least marginally improve in the afternoon across many locations. MVFR to IFR conditions across the panhandle will experience some improvement through the day in the wake of a system which departs in the morning, and much of the panhandle will even experience a lull in the rainfall through the afternoon. LLWS will generally drop off through Sunday morning as well. Starting late Sunday morning, winds will pick up and become gusty for northern Lynn Canal, including PAGY & PAHN as a low moves northeastward into the southern Yukon territory of Canada. This will last through the end of the TAF period. By late Sunday night though, another system will arrive, bringing with it more moderate to heavy rainfall, as well as deteriorating VIS and CIGS. && .MARINE... Outside: Downward trend in westerlies will continue through the morning hours, sustained by the rising pressures in the wake of the passing low pressure. As ridging aloft fully builds the surface pressure, winds will diminish down to 10 knots. A warm front will begin to push in from the SW tonight, increasing winds back to a fresh to strong breeze from Sitka south. Fortunately, the westerly swell which has been present will have subsided, with wave heights becoming less swell dependent. Therefore, wave heights will cap at around 9 ft coinciding with the westerly winds, counter to the 13-14 ft seas currently on the coastline of Prince of Wales Island. Inside: Southerly winds continue to inundate the inner channels from rising pressures. Widespread fresh southerly breezes will continue through the morning hours before relaxing slightly and shifting slightly westward. As the surface wave pushes into Canada this afternoon, a shift in winds is expected in Icy Strait to 20 knots from the SW. Only expect this to stick around for around 6 hours as the warm front pushes in from the SW. Then, stronger wind placement will shift to Chatham Strait, Stephens Passage, Frederick Sound, and western Sumner Strait back up to 20 knots. && .HYDROLOGY... Rainfall will continue across the area as multiple systems move into the panhandle through the weekend. As of Sunday morning, heaviest rainfall rates are focused around west facing areas. In particular, Sitka, Juneau, Petersburg, and areas near Wrangell are the big winners, with 12 hour accumulations between 1.25 - 2.00 inches. Once more, the panhandle is on the downward trend; however, Sunday night into Monday will see another plume of moisture associated with a warm front move over the central panhandle, then slowly shift southward. What is particularly impressive about this moisture are freezing levels, which look to exceed 12000 ft from Sitka southward. This combined with incoming PW of 1.8 in, or about 180% of normal, will lead to heavy rain for west facing mountains yet again. Fortunately for these areas, ridging aloft will limit the amount of dynamic lift for areas over the panhandle, which will limit overall rainfall. Unfortunately, however, between the saturated air and very warm temperatures, still looking at rising rivers and heavy rain. 1.5 - 2.25 inches are expected, with higher amounts in west facing areas such as Sitka. No changes with flooding -- no flooding is expected at this time. && .AJK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... PUBLIC...None. MARINE...Small Craft Advisory for PKZ012-022-053-641>644-651-652-661>664- 671-672. && $$ SHORT TERM...NC LONG TERM....STJ AVIATION...GFS MARINE...NC HYDROLOGY...NM Visit us at http://www.weather.gov/Juneau