


Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Medford, OR
Issued by NWS Medford, OR
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014 FXUS66 KMFR 150348 AFDMFR Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Medford OR 848 PM PDT Mon Jul 14 2025 .UPDATE...Isolated to scattered thunderstorms over eastern Modoc County are moving east of the area this evening. High pressure will remain centered just offshore with a shortwave trough moving across the region north of the area tonight and Tuesday. This will bring slightly less hot temperatures on Tuesday with high temperatures trending 2 to 5 degrees lower. HeatRisk values are lower as well. However, temperature remain above normal and there remains a moderate risk for heat related illness for those sensitive to heat or without adequate cooling. So, we have kept a heat advisory in place for valleys west of the Cascades. East of the Cascades temperatures trend less hot as well. Also on Tuesday, with the shortwave passing to the north, the National Blend of Models supports a 10 percent chance for isolated thunderstorms across southern Klamath, southern Lake, eastern Siskiyou and Modoc counties. We will continue to monitor this. Going into Wednesday, expect temperatures to trend slightly hotter and likely dry weather. && .AVIATION...15/00Z TAFs...VFR conditions will prevail for most areas through the TAF period. Isolated showers and thunderstorms are occurring over northern California with cumulus buildups across Klamath and Lake County. Gusty winds are common across the region today, strongest along the coast where gusts of 35-40 kt are occurring. Winds will ease after sunset along with shower/thunderstorm activity. The marine layer is expected to return to coastal locations this evening after winds ease, and then persist into Tuesday morning. /BR-y && .MARINE...Updated 830 PM PDT Monday, July 14, 2025...The thermal trough pattern will continue through Wednesday. This will maintain strong north winds and steep to very steep wind-driven seas across all waters. Gales are expected in the afternoons/evenings mainly south of Port Orford and beyond 5 nm from shore. Conditions will begin to improve around mid-week as we transition away from wind- driven seas. However, steep seas will be found in all areas Tuesday evening through Thursday morning. -Hermansen/BR-y && .PREV DISCUSSION... /Issued 248 PM PDT Mon Jul 14 2025/ DISCUSSION...It will be another warm afternoon with locations reaching 95-101 degrees. Taking the warmer morning and the expected highs into consideration, more locations are under an elevated risk today. This will impact anyone that does not have effective cooling and/or adequate hydration. An Extreme Heat Warning and Heat Advisory is in effect through Tuesday evening for this heat risk. Details can be found in NPWMFR. There will be another 10-20% chance of thunderstorms this afternoon as another shortwave passes through. This will be concentrated in Siskiyou, Modoc and Lake counties. Tuesday`s temperatures will be similar to today, but conditions are forecast to stay dry. In terms of overnight temperatures, forecast lows will be in the 50s and low 60s for more locations. The northerly flow we`ll have the next few days will bring low concentrations of near surface smoke to southern Oregon. Higher concentrations of smoke from the Butler Fire is forecast in Siskiyou County and for Modoc County from the Green Fire Tuesday afternoon because of a more westerly flow there. Smoke higher in the atmosphere will create hazy skies for more parts of southern Oregon the next few afternoons. Areas east of the Cascades will likely not be under the risk for the heat after the current time frame through Tuesday evening, so the Heat Advisory for east side will be finished then. The main change in the forecast has been to add a Heat Advisory for west side valleys on Wednesday due to a 80-95% chance for the Rogue and Illinois valleys and portions of the Klamath River Valley to see 100 degrees. Either way, precautions need to be made to protect yourself from the heat. Drink plenty of water, avoid peak heating between 10 AM and 4 PM, and stay in an air- conditioned room as much as possible. Long Term...Thursday through Sunday...Ridging continues through the rest of the work week with temperatures 5-10 degrees above normal for this time of year. After, a low starts to develop into western Canada Thursday into Friday. This will help "cool" temperatures back to below the 98-101 degree mark for more west side locations. Looking to still favor drier conditions next weekend and the week after will have cooler temperatures back to near normal. FIRE WEATHER...Thunderstorms remain the main fire weather headline this afternoon and early evening. Read the discussion above for more details on that. Otherwise, a well defined thermal trough shown by inverted MSLP and 850mb heights on top of 1000-500mb thickness values spread north into western Oregon. During this time, light east breezes around 10 to perhaps 15 mph will cover the Cascades. We continued to keep recoveries moderate on the western mid slopes of the Cascades and about 10% below guidance. Overall, fire weather risk is limited through the forecast period as wind and rh combinations remain below red flag criteria. We were interested in wind and rh fire weather conditions Thursday earlier, although newer data seems to squashed those concerns east of the Cascades. The one thing to note is ECMWF ENS along with the GFS is predicting some thunderstorms east of the Cascades Thursday evening. Again, these storms appears to be on the drier side with a 0.7 PWAT based on the 12Z GFS forecast sounding. Otherwise, hot and dry weather will persist through this week, but temperatures do trend a bit lower by the weekend with temperatures near normal by Sunday. && .MFR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OR...Heat Advisory until 8 PM PDT Wednesday for ORZ023>026. CA...Heat Advisory until 8 PM PDT Wednesday for CAZ080-081. PACIFIC COASTAL WATERS...Gale Warning until 11 PM PDT Tuesday for PZZ356-376. Small Craft Advisory from 11 PM Tuesday to 5 AM PDT Thursday for PZZ350-356-370-376. && $$