Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Albuquerque, NM

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346 FXUS65 KABQ 120916 AFDABQ Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 316 AM MDT Wed Jun 12 2024 ...New SYNOPSIS, SHORT TERM, LONG TERM, FIRE WEATHER... .SYNOPSIS...
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Issued at 232 AM MDT Wed Jun 12 2024 Quieter weather generally in store for today, after some morning fog in the eastern Plains, though heat begins to build and then reaches its height on Thursday. Clouds and increased rain and thunder chances bring some relief from the heat for Friday into early Saturday. Shower and thunderstorm chances will be lower today compared to Tuesday, then very low on Thursday. Precip chances then begin increasing in western New Mexico Thursday night before peaking during the daytime hours on Friday. Burn scar flash-flooding is likely to be a concern, especially for the Hermit`s Peak/Calf Canyon area. Rain chances taper off into Saturday, with heat returning for the early part of next week. Breezy southwest winds appear likely for Monday and Tuesday, with only a slight downtick in temperatures from Sunday.
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&& .SHORT TERM...
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(Today through Thursday) Issued at 232 AM MDT Wed Jun 12 2024 Fog and low clouds are making there way westward toward the east central plains this morning. Still possible that visibility could drop as low as 1/4 mile around Clovis and Portales toward sunrise. A Dense Fog Advisory may be needed later this morning. Thereafter, a much quieter day is in store across northern and central NM. The H5 upper level high across western NM will increase to around 595- 596dam this afternoon which will limit the amount of convection today. A few storms remain possible across the eastern half of the state, particularly around the south central mountains, but severe weather is not anticipated today. Nonetheless, large temp/dewpoint spreads and inverted-V profiles will allow for gusty downburst winds with any shower or thunderstorm. Rather, the main story today will be the warming temperatures. Temperatures will warm another 5 to 10 degrees over yesterday`s readings, with many areas topping out in the 90s to low 100s. The warming trend will continue into Thursday as the upper high moves squarely over central NM. Several areas will top out in the triple digits, and given high confidence of this, went ahead and issued a Heat Advisory for Thursday afternoon for the middle and lower Rio Grande Valleys, Northwest Plateau to include Farmington as well as the Roswell area. Albuquerque and Roswell may tie or break the record high for the date (100 and 107 degrees, respectively), and several other locations will be close. Storms will be few and far between on Thursday afternoon, but couldn`t rule out a dry lightning strike and/or sprinkle across western NM in the afternoon or a stray thunderstorm across the south central mountains.
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&& .LONG TERM...
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(Thursday night through Tuesday) Issued at 232 AM MDT Wed Jun 12 2024 Overall, fairly typical weather for late June is expected to ensue, with the pattern appearing transitional at times toward monsoon-like. Following Thursday`s heat, Friday still looks like the wettest day of the next week across New Mexico, as an upper- level low approaches and manages to pull in relatively high column moisture values. Rain and thunderstorm chances currently favor roughly the northern half of NM, as the mid-level low initially along the AZ/CA border fills while it moves toward the Four Corners region through the day on Friday. Precip shield expands from west-to-east beginning early on Friday morning. QPF has trended similar to previous forecast package, with highest areal- average amounts of 0.5-1.0 inches across the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and adjacent highlands before the upper trough exits New Mexico by mid-day Saturday. The Hermit`s Peak/Calf Canyon burn scar will need to be watched carefully, particularly Friday afternoon into the evening, when flash flooding is likely to be a concern. Friday should also see some relief from Thursday`s heat, with max temps 10-15 degrees F lower due to increased cloud cover and rain chances. Temperatures are then forecast pop back up to near or above normal on Saturday, except perhaps over the NE, depending on timing of the exiting trough, as weak/flat ridging takes hold in the wake of Friday`s system. Some re-development of thunderstorms is possible over the NE highlands and plains Saturday mid-day, but coverage should remain fairly isolated to widely scattered and peter out by mid-afternoon. Relatively weak flow at upper levels is progged for Sunday, as a much drier column starts to work in at lower levels ahead of a low in the Pacific NW (and eventually a large-scale W. CONUS trough) heading toward Monday. Breezy SW winds takes shape on Monday, as modest lee-side troughing develops over CO. Temperatures continue to run a few degrees above normal over most of the area through Tuesday, with some areas flirting with Heat Advisory criteria again on Sunday, with upper 90s/near-100F temps in the ABQ metro, for example. There may be enough moisture hanging on near the Texas border along a quasi-dryline for slight chance of thunderstorms late Sunday and Monday afternoons, but guidance has trended away from this scenario. A back-door cold front may bring the next shot at relief from the heat, arriving next Tuesday night. Rain chances still questionable, as the subtropical ridge looks to build back westward from the Gulf coast around this same time.
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&& .AVIATION... (06Z TAFS) Issued at 1113 PM MDT Tue Jun 11 2024 VFR conditions are ongoing and forecast to persist for all but far eastern NM for the next 24 hours. Similar to last night, low clouds and fog are expected to develop across far east central NM between 09-15Z impacting areas such as KCVN, KCVS and (to a lesser degree) K4MR. Vsby may drop as low as 1/2SM at times. Meanwhile, a few showers and thunderstorms across south central NM are currently diminishing and will continue to do so over the next hour. Fewer storms are expected Wednesday afternoon, but it`s not out of the question for isolated thunderstorms to develop across eastern NM. Confidence is too low to include at any TAF site attm. && .FIRE WEATHER...
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Issued at 232 AM MDT Wed Jun 12 2024 Warmer and drier conditions are expected today and Thursday before another round of showers and thunderstorms arrive on Friday. Hot temperatures, several hours of single digit RH across central and western NM and high Haines values will be the rule both today and Thursday. Fortunately, there will not be much wind with an upper level high building overhead. Moisture return begins Thursday night in advance of the next storm system. An upper level low will eject eastward from SoCal and cross northern NM. Plenty of lift with continued increasing moisture will yield showers and thunderstorms with wetting rainfall across much of the area. Brief critical fire weather conditions are looking less likely Friday afternoon across west central NM with winds not expected to be quite as strong in that area. Temperatures will cool with the system passage but will quickly rebound over the weekend. Dry and breezy conditions look to return early next week with brief critical fire weather conditions possible.
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&& .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
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Farmington...................... 98 57 100 61 / 0 0 0 20 Dulce........................... 91 47 94 46 / 0 0 0 10 Cuba............................ 92 55 94 56 / 0 0 0 20 Gallup.......................... 95 49 96 50 / 0 0 0 20 El Morro........................ 90 53 91 55 / 0 0 5 30 Grants.......................... 94 50 95 55 / 0 0 5 20 Quemado......................... 92 56 92 56 / 0 0 5 30 Magdalena....................... 93 63 95 65 / 5 5 5 20 Datil........................... 91 60 92 61 / 0 0 10 30 Reserve......................... 95 49 96 51 / 0 0 5 30 Glenwood........................ 99 61 101 69 / 0 0 0 20 Chama........................... 84 47 87 47 / 10 0 0 10 Los Alamos...................... 86 65 90 65 / 10 0 0 10 Pecos........................... 90 58 95 60 / 5 5 0 10 Cerro/Questa.................... 83 50 88 48 / 10 5 0 10 Red River....................... 74 44 79 48 / 20 5 5 10 Angel Fire...................... 80 35 84 45 / 10 0 0 5 Taos............................ 89 50 93 55 / 5 0 0 10 Mora............................ 85 52 88 53 / 10 0 5 5 Espanola........................ 95 60 98 61 / 5 0 0 10 Santa Fe........................ 89 62 94 63 / 5 0 0 10 Santa Fe Airport................ 93 59 98 61 / 5 0 0 10 Albuquerque Foothills........... 94 67 98 68 / 0 0 0 20 Albuquerque Heights............. 97 68 101 67 / 0 0 0 10 Albuquerque Valley.............. 99 66 102 67 / 0 0 0 10 Albuquerque West Mesa........... 98 67 101 68 / 0 0 0 10 Belen........................... 99 63 102 63 / 0 0 0 20 Bernalillo...................... 98 65 101 67 / 0 0 0 10 Bosque Farms.................... 99 62 102 63 / 0 0 0 20 Corrales........................ 98 63 101 67 / 0 0 0 10 Los Lunas....................... 99 62 102 64 / 0 0 0 20 Placitas........................ 94 65 97 67 / 0 0 0 10 Rio Rancho...................... 97 67 100 67 / 0 0 0 10 Socorro......................... 101 69 105 69 / 5 5 0 20 Sandia Park/Cedar Crest......... 89 64 92 62 / 0 0 0 10 Tijeras......................... 91 65 95 62 / 0 0 0 10 Edgewood........................ 91 61 94 58 / 0 0 0 10 Moriarty/Estancia............... 93 54 95 55 / 0 0 0 10 Clines Corners.................. 88 58 92 57 / 0 0 0 10 Mountainair..................... 92 62 95 60 / 0 0 0 20 Gran Quivira.................... 93 59 96 60 / 0 0 5 20 Carrizozo....................... 96 67 100 67 / 5 5 0 10 Ruidoso......................... 90 61 92 63 / 20 10 10 10 Capulin......................... 89 57 92 56 / 10 10 10 10 Raton........................... 92 55 95 56 / 10 10 5 5 Springer........................ 91 55 96 58 / 10 10 5 5 Las Vegas....................... 87 55 92 58 / 10 5 0 5 Clayton......................... 94 64 99 64 / 10 10 10 10 Roy............................. 90 61 95 61 / 10 10 5 10 Conchas......................... 97 64 101 65 / 5 5 0 5 Santa Rosa...................... 94 63 97 63 / 5 5 0 5 Tucumcari....................... 96 64 100 65 / 0 5 0 5 Clovis.......................... 94 66 99 67 / 5 5 0 10 Portales........................ 95 66 100 67 / 0 5 0 5 Fort Sumner..................... 97 66 101 66 / 10 5 0 5 Roswell......................... 101 69 107 73 / 10 10 0 0 Picacho......................... 95 64 99 64 / 30 10 10 10 Elk............................. 92 62 96 62 / 30 5 20 5
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&& .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
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Heat Advisory from noon to 7 PM MDT Thursday for NMZ201-219-220- 238.
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&& $$ SHORT TERM...34 LONG TERM....53 AVIATION...34