Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Las Vegas, NV

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811 FXUS65 KVEF 161707 AFDVEF Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 1007 AM PDT Sun Jun 16 2024 .SYNOPSIS...A shifting weather pattern will bring a cooling trend to the area today through the middle of the week in addition to breezy winds. Temperatures are forecast to increase late in the week with very hot conditions expected over the weekend into the early days of the following week. Chances are high of seeing 110 degrees or higher in Las Vegas next weekend which will bring with it, the reintroduction of major Heat Risk impacts. Chances are low but not out of the question that highs beyond Sunday could reach 115 degrees or higher. Moderate Heat Risk is forecast across much of the remainder of the area with pockets of major Heat Risk sprinkled in. Welcome to the first official weekend of Summer in the Desert Southwest! && .UPDATE...
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Skies were clear across the region this morning, though haze was noted in areas of southern California into Clark County as winds pushed smoke from California fires into the region. Winds so far this morning have been light outside of portions of San Bernardino County through southern Mohave County where west to southwest winds have already started gusting to 25 MPH. Winds through the day will increase across the region as a longwave trough slowly digs south, though widespread impactful winds are not expected. Westerly wind gusts up to 40 MPH are possible at times around Barstow, CA after 4 PM which may impact drivers on I-40 and I- 15 around that area, however impacts would be limited as widespread gusts over 40 MPH are not expected and any higher winds should be short lived. Otherwise, south to southwest winds across the region will gust 20 to 30 MPH at times, especially late this afternoon and early evening. With increased winds and very dry conditions, the Red Flag Warning remains in effect for Mohave County where the risk for rapidly spreading fires is high. With the incoming system comes cooler temperatures. High temperatures today will be slightly above normal but a few degrees cooler than yesterday. No significant changes were made to the afternoon forecast other than updating conditions for smoke and haze from nearby wildfires. -Nickerson-
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&& .PREVIOUS DISCUSSION...
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219 AM PDT Sun Jun 16 2024 .SHORT TERM...Today and Monday. Some relief from the heat is forecast for today and Monday with afternoon high temperatures around 5 degrees cooler today with an additional 3-5 degrees of cooling on Monday. Here in the Las Vegas Valley, a few days ago we were looking at a 3-day string of sub 100 degree days Mon-Wed but now it looks like this will be limited to a single day on Tuesday. NBM probabilities for temperatures of 99 or less are now 25% for Monday and Wednesday with a 90% chance on Tuesday. Enhanced southwest winds this afternoon and Monday afternoon will increase fire spread concerns across northwest Arizona where Red Flag Warnings are in place. Across our area, southwest gusts of 15-25 mph are expected to be fairly widespread this afternoon with more localized gusts of 25-35 mph across the Western Mojave Desert and into central Mohave County in and around the Kingman area. On Monday, widespread southerly gusts of 15-30 mph are expected except for gusts of 25-35 in the western portions of San Bernardino County and locally around Kingman. Gusty northwest winds 25-40 mph are forecast on Monday across Esmeralda County and parts of northern Inyo and central Nye County behind a cold front. .LONG TERM...Tuesday through Saturday. Tuesday will be the "coolest" day of the week with afternoon high temperatures topping out 3 to 5 degrees below normal for mid-June. Troughiness will linger across the Western US through the end of the work week as the upper-level trough that brought us our brief reprieve from the heat weakens. These rising 500 mb heights will allow for temperatures will quickly recover back up to 5 to 10 degrees hotter than normal by the end of the week. By Friday, widespread Moderate HeatRisk will have returned to southeastern California, northwestern Arizona, and southern Nevada. Major HeatRisk will return to the Las Vegas Valley, Death Valley, and the Amargosa Valley on Saturday as temperatures continue to climb.
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&& .AVIATION...For Harry Reid...Breezy south winds will persist through daybreak with sporadic gusts of 15 to 20 knots. A relative lull in the winds is likely post-sunrise through early afternoon when the winds will trend lighter but continue to favor south directions. A renewed push of southerlies are expected by 20z with afternoon and evening gusts to 25 knots that will persist well into the overnight period. Skies will be mostly clear though some light haze from regional wildfire activity may reduce slantwise visibility. For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast California...Another day of widespread south or southwesterly winds across the Mojave Desert with afternoon and evening gusts of 20 to 30 knots. Winds further north across the Sierra will favor more northwesterly directions near KBIH but 20 to 30 knot gusts are likely there as well. Skies will be mostly clear though some light haze from regional wildfire activity may reduce slantwise visibility across parts of the Mojave Desert. && .FIRE WEATHER...Very dry conditions are expected both today and Monday with minimum relative humidity dropping below 10% each afternoon. For Arizona fire zones 101 and 102, poor RH recovery is expected tonight with some improvement forecast Monday night. In addition to the Red Flag Warning in effect for AZZ101-102 today, a new RFW has been issued for Monday when similar conditions are present. Widespread wind gusts may struggle to reach or exceed gust thresholds but sustained winds will likely exceed 20 mph both days. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating procedures. && $$ SHORT TERM/FIRE WEATHER...Salmen LONG TERM...Stessman AVIATION...Outler For more forecast information...see us on our webpage: https://weather.gov/lasvegas or follow us on Facebook and Twitter