


Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Buffalo, NY
Issued by NWS Buffalo, NY
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890 FXUS61 KBUF 021043 AFDBUF Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Buffalo NY 643 AM EDT Tue Sep 2 2025 .SYNOPSIS... Aside from the possibility of a few widely scattered showers this afternoon, dry and comfortable weather will continue through midweek as high pressure slowly drifts eastward and off the New England coastline. A pair of cold fronts will then bring fairly widespread showers and a few thunderstorms Thursday, followed by unsettled weather and cooling temperatures later Friday into the weekend. Winds will also become quite breezy with these frontal passages Thursday and again on Friday. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... The core of a weak upper-level low evident on WV satellite imagery over NYS early this morning will slowly drift northward into southern ON/QC through tonight. High pressure ridging in the lower levels from the Canadian Maritimes to the Great Lakes will concurrently shrink closer to the East Coast. While seasonably warm and mostly dry weather should prevail as a result of the latter, with cooler air lingering aloft from the former, a few diurnally driven showers or even a thunderstorm or two may develop this afternoon. Chances for this look greatest across the Tug Hill region and St. Lawrence Valley where mid-level lapse rates will be a bit steeper, with perhaps some widely scattered activity inland from the lake breezes across WNY. Any shower activity should quickly taper off with the setting sun this evening. A gentle southerly breeze developing around the eastern high will lead to slightly milder temps compared to the previous couple of nights. && .SHORT TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/... Dry weather will be in place for Wednesday to start the period as weak ridging crosses the area. Partly to mostly sunny skies can be expected. Winds will start to increase some out of the south later in the day. Temperatures for Wednesday will warm to the low 70s to low 80s from the higher terrain to the lower elevations, respectively. A large vertically stacked low will stall near James Bay from Thursday morning through Friday night. This will bring the next round of rain to the region as its first of two cold fronts tracks across the area from mid morning through the afternoon on Thursday. This will bring an organized line of showers with some embedded thunderstorms across the area. Rain will be heavy at times as the line crosses the area and as smaller waves of low pressure tracks north along the front. Rainfall amounts of 0.50"-1.00" can be expected for most area, with some localized higher amounts possible. The fairly quick nature of the front should limit the rainfall to those values, but if the front is a bit slower, then those rainfall amounts will be higher. Winds will also increase ahead of the front with increasing pressure gradient and as a llj moves over the area, which will also help with the forcing for the rain. Wind gusts to at least 30 mph look increasingly likely for Thursday. High temperatures ahead of the front on Thursday will range from the mid 60s across the far southwestern portion of the area to near 80 for the eastern portions of the area. Cooler temperatures in the low 70s will be possible for the higher terrain east of Lake Ontario. Showers will taper off from west to east early Thursday evening through around midnight Thursday night behind the passing front. && .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... The vertically stacked system up by James Bay will slowly start to track northeast through Saturday. But another cold front associated with the system will track across the region on Friday evening as a potent shortwave and sfc low get rapped into the larger scale trough. This will send another round of showers across the area with the passing cold front. Some timing issues still among guidance this far out as well as strength of the passing front and the overall rainfall amounts. Winds will once again increase ahead of and along this front through the day on Friday, becoming weaker behind the front. Elevated winds will still be possible on the lakes in the CAA regime into the weekend. Behind the passing cold front, cooling temperatures aloft and cyclonic flow over the region will result in lake enhanced/effect rain showers downwind of the lakes through at least Sunday night. Some guidance continues the lake showers a little longer into the start of next week with the associated trough a little slower to push out of the region. High pressure will briefly push into the region, bringing a dry day or two at the start of next week, before the next system and round of showers approaches. Temperatures will be near to a few degrees below normal to start the period, with day-to-day cooling through the weekend to further below. As high pressure shifts east of the area early next week, temperatures will increase some, but still remain near to below normal. && .AVIATION /12Z TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... VFR weather will prevail through the 12z TAF cycle as a weak upper level low pressure drifts north of the region. A wealth of mid/high cloud cover associated with this low creeping into the region will move in tandem and largely shift north of the TAF sites by late morning. Valley fog in the Southern Tier early this morning is not expected to impact vsbys at KJHW. VFR diurnal cumulus will likely develop this afternoon inland from developing lake breezes. A few widely scattered showers may be possible across Western NY with a thunderstorm or two possible in the North Country as cooler air remains aloft, though chances appear far too low to warrant mention in the TAFs at this time. Any precipitation that manages to develop will diminish by this evening. Another round of valley fog is possible in the Southern Tier overnight with localized IFR. Outlook... Wednesday...VFR. Thursday...MVFR with rain showers and gusty winds along a cold frontal passage. Friday and Saturday...Mainly VFR with lingering rain showers and gusty winds. && .MARINE... Locally elevated offshore winds 10-15kts will be possible near the Lake Erie shoreline through about mid-morning. Otherwise, light winds and minimal waves are expected through Wednesday as high pressure drifts east and off the New England coastline. A cold front will then cross the area between Thursday and Thursday night...with increasing southerlies to southwesterlies expected out ahead of the front Thursday...and fairly brisk southwesterlies to westerlies following in its wake Friday and Saturday. Eastern portions of Lake Erie and western Ontario could see conditions reach low-end SCA criteria for a time Thursday...with more widespread advisory-level conditions then appearing more likely Friday into Saturday. && .BUF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NY...None. MARINE...None. && $$ SYNOPSIS...JJR/PP NEAR TERM...PP SHORT TERM...SW LONG TERM...SW AVIATION...PP MARINE...JJR/PP