760
FXUS66 KOTX 150923
AFDOTX

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Spokane WA
223 AM PDT Tue Jul 15 2025

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Remaining breezy today with northeast winds. Strongest winds
  be down the Okanogan Valley, Purcell Trench, and over the
  Columbia Basin. Not as windy as Monday.

- Cooler today then warming back above normal through the end of
  the work week. Very warm with moderate HeatRisk expanding
  Thursday into Friday.

&&

.SYNOPSIS...
Today will be cooler with breezy northeast winds. Then temperatures
warm back above normal at the end of the work week. Occasional
shower and thunderstorms chances near the Canadian border and
periodic breezy conditions into the weekend.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
Today and Tonight: Temperatures will be 10 to 15 degrees cooler
than on Monday with blustery winds out of the northeast
continuing through much of the day due to the development of a
thermal trough west of the Cascades and comparatively high
surface pressure over our region northeast of the Cascades.
Winds will be strongest down the Purcell Trench with gusts of up
to 40 mph expected at times through early Tuesday. High
resolution model guidance such as the UW-WRF suggest winds of
this magnitude across Pend Oreille County as well, especially
along ridges. The Wind Advisory will continue through 11 AM this
morning for these areas. The wind advisory for the Okanogan
Highlands has been cancelled as winds look breezy not strong
enough to result in impacts such as tree damage nor power
outages. While Tuesday`s winds are not expected to be nearly as
strong as Monday`s, gusts in the 25 to 30 mph range down the
Okanogan Valley and across the Columbia Basin will still be a
concern for fires with afternoon humidity levels dropping to
around 20 percent.

Wednesday through Friday: Temperatures will warm back up through the
end of the week, returning to the 90s for most locations by Friday.
Periodic breezy conditions and occasional shower and thunderstorm
chances along the Canadian border are anticipated. Winds will remain
out of the north/northeast through early Wednesday, then will shift
out of the south Wednesday evening ahead of the next shortwave
moving in. As the shortwave tracks through Thursday afternoon,
isolated showers and thunderstorms will be possible in far northeast
WA and North ID. In addition to shower and thunderstorm chances, the
Okanogan Valley can expect another round of breezy northerly winds,
though much more tame than what they experienced Monday. Generally
sustained speeds will be 10 to 20 mph with gusts 20 to 30 mph. For
southeastern WA and the Central ID Panhandle, winds will remain
westerly.

Saturday and Sunday: Models point toward a broader trough moving
into the region over the weekend cooling temperatures into the 80s
and bringing additional shower and thunderstorm chances along the
Canadian border. Winds look to pick up out of the west Saturday, so
that will be something to monitor for fire weather concerns over the
coming days. /Fewkes

&&

.AVIATION...
06Z TAFS: North to northeast winds will remain gusty overnight
and into Tuesday morning for most of the region. Convection
will dwindle over northeast WA and North ID through the night
but could bring gusty and erratic winds to the area for the next
couple of hours as well as infrequent cloud to ground
lightning and brief heavy rain.

FORECAST CONFIDENCE AND/OR ALTERNATE SCENARIOS: High confidence
that VFR conditions will continue at all TAF sites. Low
confidence on how smoke/haze will impact smaller airports from
Omak (KOMK) to Colville (KCQV) to Sandpoint (KSZT) early Tuesday
morning as smoke could be trapped in the morning inversions.

&&

.Preliminary Point Temps/PoPs...
Spokane        78  53  86  58  92  60 /  10   0   0   0   0   0
Coeur d`Alene  75  52  86  57  90  59 /  10   0   0   0   0   0
Pullman        78  49  84  54  87  55 /  10   0   0   0   0   0
Lewiston       89  60  93  65  98  66 /  10   0   0   0   0   0
Colville       79  43  85  49  88  50 /  10   0   0   0  10   0
Sandpoint      71  47  82  52  86  54 /  30   0   0   0  10   0
Kellogg        70  52  83  60  86  61 /  30   0   0   0   0   0
Moses Lake     86  57  91  60  95  62 /   0   0   0   0   0   0
Wenatchee      88  64  93  67  95  69 /   0   0   0   0   0   0
Omak           89  57  92  61  94  62 /   0   0   0   0   0   0

&&

.OTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...Wind Advisory until 11 AM PDT this morning for Northeast
     Mountains.
ID...Wind Advisory until 11 AM PDT this morning for Coeur d`Alene
     Area-Northern Panhandle.

&&

$$