802
FXUS66 KOTX 282102
AFDOTX

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Spokane WA
202 PM PDT Fri Jun 28 2024

.SYNOPSIS...
Mild and mostly dry weather on Friday followed by warmer
temperatures Saturday. The next system moves through Sunday with
more wind and thunderstorms expected. Mountain showers and
seasonal temperatures will continue through early next week. The
forecast trends warmer and drier by the middle to the end of next
week.

&&

.DISCUSSION...

Tonight and Saturday: While a shallow ridge is over the the Pacific
Northwest, a Gulf of Alaska Low will push a shortwave through the
Inland Northwest. It is expected to precip chances to the Cascades
and northern mountain areas through Saturday. An isolated
thunderstorm is possible over North Idaho with 10-20% probability.
Main impact will infrequent lightning in the area. The rest of the
region will remain precip free. Overnight lows will be in the 50s.
Highs will be in the upper 70s and 80s.

Saturday night and Sunday: The ridge slides east the trough draws
more moisture and instability across the region. The precip chances
remain over the Cascades and northern mountains. By late Saturday,
the chances spread south over the eastern third of Washington,
including Spokane and Pullman, and the Idaho Panhandle. The best
thunderstorm potential remains over the northern mountains and Idaho
Panhandle with range of 30-40%. The Columbia Basin has a 10-20%
chance of thunderstorms. Winds will increase in the Cascades Gaps
and western portion of the Basin. Sustained westerly winds will
increase to the teens and low 20s. Gusts will climb into the 30s.
Highs for the day will be in the 80s to low 90s. Overnight lows will
be in the 50s to low 60s. /JDC

Monday through Thursday: Heading into the start of next week the
Inland Northwest will be caught in a pressure gradient between a
ridge off the west coast and a trough over Montana. Breezy winds are
expected regionwide Monday afternoon with gusts up to 30 mph, and
showers and thunderstorms will be possible over areas of higher
terrain in the northeastern corner of the region including the
mountains of northeastern WA and the northern ID Panhandle.

Breezy winds in the afternoon along with the development of showers
and thunderstorms over higher terrain will be a recurring thing
through next week, but thanks to the offshore ridge gradually
nudging inland, winds won`t be quite as strong and coverage of
showers and thunderstorms will be more limited than on Monday.

Daytime highs will generally be in the 80s and overnight lows in the
50s - very typical for this time of year. For the second half of the
week, around 80% of models are suggesting a warming trend, and by
next Friday we could potentially see temperatures in the 90s. More
details on that as it gets closer. /Fewkes

&&

.AVIATION...
18Z TAFS: VFR conditions with light winds will prevail. A thin
stratus is impacting PUW but should dissipate by noon. Chance of
showers Friday afternoon is along the Canadian border in north
Idaho/northeast Washington.


FORECAST CONFIDENCE AND/OR ALTERNATE SCENARIOS:
High confidence in VFR conditions through the TAF period. /JDC

-----------------------

Confidence descriptors:
Low - Less than a 30 percent chance
Moderate - 30 to 70 percent chance
High - Greater than a 70 percent chance

For additional probabilistic information for NWS Spokane airports,
please refer to the Aviation Dashboard on our webpage:
https:/www.weather.gov/otx/avndashboard

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
Spokane        56  82  59  82  55  81 /   0  10  10  20   0  10
Coeur d`Alene  55  81  58  77  54  77 /   0  10  20  30  10  20
Pullman        52  81  55  78  52  76 /   0  10  20  10   0   0
Lewiston       60  90  66  87  61  86 /   0  10  20  10   0   0
Colville       48  79  50  77  45  78 /   0  10  20  60  20  30
Sandpoint      51  78  54  74  51  74 /  10  10  30  60  20  40
Kellogg        56  78  59  74  55  72 /   0  10  30  50  10  20
Moses Lake     59  86  59  87  55  86 /   0  10   0   0   0   0
Wenatchee      64  84  61  83  60  81 /   0  10   0   0   0   0
Omak           59  86  59  85  55  85 /   0  10  20  10   0   0

&&

.OTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
ID...None.
WA...None.
&&

$$