Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Albuquerque, NM
Issued by NWS Albuquerque, NM
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951 FXUS65 KABQ 060549 AAB AFDABQ Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 1049 PM MST Fri Dec 5 2025 ...New AVIATION... .KEY MESSAGES... Updated at 1040 PM MST Fri Dec 5 2025 - Northwest crosswinds will create difficult travel across east central New Mexico Saturday, especially for large and high- profile vehicles. - There is high confidence for dry and warmer weather over all of central and northern New Mexico next week, leading to snowmelt across midslope and high terrain areas. && .SHORT TERM... (This evening through Saturday night) Issued at 131 PM MST Fri Dec 5 2025 Northwest flow aloft will begin to increase throughout the evening and overnight as a 110 kt 300 mb level jet digs south into the central Rockies. As for this afternoon, there will be some breezy northwest winds for most areas, but the central highlands may see some gusts up to 35 mph. Surface winds decouple after sunset, so winds around the majority of New Mexico will become more light and variable during the night. However, 700 mb winds will be climbing up to around 65 kts during the morning hours on Saturday, peaking at around sunrise. As a result, the peaks along the Sangre de Cristo Mountains will be seeing strong wind gusts up to 55 mph for most of the morning. The timing of this mid level speed max being in the morning means that the strongest winds aloft will most likely not be able to mix down to the surface during peak heating in the afternoon. Guidance is not really a showing signal for any crashing mountain waves either, so wind speeds in most of east- central New Mexico look to remain sub-advisory. A Wind Advisory has been issued for the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and parts of the central highlands (including Clines Corners) for the early morning through early afternoon period. There is high confidence for reaching advisory criteria wind gusts over the mountain tops, and moderate confidence for the central highland areas. But considering how nuisance the winds can be over the Clines Corners area, have opted to include them in the the Wind Advisory where sustained speeds of 35 mph and gusts up to 50 mph may be observed for a few hours. Winds diminish in the late afternoon and become more light and variable after sunset. Temperatures for Saturday and Saturday night will be around average for this time of year. An upper level shortwave will push a weak backdoor front down the TX and OK panhandles on Saturday night, shifting winds north in eastern New Mexico and cooling temperatures slightly. && .LONG TERM... (Sunday through Thursday) Issued at 131 PM MST Fri Dec 5 2025 Dry, breezy, and sunny will be the main story for next week here in the Land of Enchantment. Northwest flow will continue to dominate the wind regime over the area as New Mexico finds itself on the edge of high pressure ridging building over the eastern Pacific. The next shortwave perturbation to pass through the intermountain west will be on Tuesday, bringing another round of breezy to windy conditions over the central highlands and mountain peaks during the afternoon. A similar situation looks to happen Thursday, except the passage of this shortwave looks to push down a backdoor cold front overnight. These waves will track over the northern rockies, so any precipitation associated with these systems will be isolated to the northern CONUS. With high pressure being the overall trend in the weather pattern, temperatures will climb through the middle of the week. High temperatures on Wednesday and Thursday look to rise above 10 to 15 degrees more than normal across many locations. Downsloping winds in eastern New Mexico will further elevate temperatures, with current forecasts showing highs reaching the low 70s near Roswell. && .AVIATION... (06Z TAFS) Issued at 1040 PM MST Fri Dec 5 2025 Widespread turbulence will continue over the Rockies thru at least Saturday and SIGMETs remain in place tonight, including NM. A strong jet stream will surge southeast into NM late tonight with strengthening mt waves and windy conditions along east-facing slopes. Surface wind gusts of 30 to 40KT will be common along the Sangre de Cristo Mts and nearby high plains of eastern NM, peaking in the 9am to 2pm window. Winds will taper off by late afternoon and early evening in all areas. && .FIRE WEATHER... Issued at 131 PM MST Fri Dec 5 2025 Minimal fire weather conditions expected through the period. Warm, dry, and sunny conditions will prevail across most areas. Saturday will have the strongest winds of the period, particularly along the mountain peaks and over the central highlands, where gusts may reach as high as 50 mph. However, minimum RH values will only drop to around 30%. Afternoon breeziness of 15 to 25 mph will be common along east-central New Mexico each afternoon next week. Ventilation will generally be poor outside of the breezy locations. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Farmington...................... 22 45 24 44 / 0 0 0 0 Dulce........................... 10 43 10 43 / 0 5 0 0 Cuba............................ 19 46 20 43 / 0 0 0 0 Gallup.......................... 18 51 18 50 / 0 0 0 0 El Morro........................ 20 48 23 48 / 0 0 0 0 Grants.......................... 18 54 21 51 / 0 0 0 0 Quemado......................... 20 51 24 50 / 0 0 0 0 Magdalena....................... 27 55 30 51 / 0 0 0 0 Datil........................... 23 51 25 49 / 0 0 0 0 Reserve......................... 21 60 24 59 / 0 0 0 0 Glenwood........................ 24 63 27 65 / 0 0 0 0 Chama........................... 11 38 11 39 / 0 5 5 0 Los Alamos...................... 22 45 24 41 / 0 0 0 0 Pecos........................... 22 46 21 46 / 0 0 0 0 Cerro/Questa.................... 16 42 18 40 / 0 0 5 0 Red River....................... 10 38 10 37 / 0 0 0 0 Angel Fire...................... 12 39 8 39 / 0 0 0 0 Taos............................ 13 44 16 41 / 0 0 0 0 Mora............................ 18 46 18 46 / 0 0 0 0 Espanola........................ 20 51 20 48 / 0 0 0 0 Santa Fe........................ 24 44 25 43 / 0 0 0 0 Santa Fe Airport................ 21 46 22 44 / 0 0 0 0 Albuquerque Foothills........... 28 50 31 48 / 0 0 0 0 Albuquerque Heights............. 25 52 28 51 / 0 0 0 0 Albuquerque Valley.............. 24 54 26 53 / 0 0 0 0 Albuquerque West Mesa........... 25 52 29 52 / 0 0 0 0 Belen........................... 21 56 22 53 / 0 0 0 0 Bernalillo...................... 25 53 27 51 / 0 0 0 0 Bosque Farms.................... 21 54 22 53 / 0 0 0 0 Corrales........................ 24 54 27 53 / 0 0 0 0 Los Lunas....................... 22 55 24 53 / 0 0 0 0 Placitas........................ 26 49 29 46 / 0 0 0 0 Rio Rancho...................... 25 52 28 51 / 0 0 0 0 Socorro......................... 26 61 30 58 / 0 0 0 0 Sandia Park/Cedar Crest......... 24 45 26 43 / 0 0 0 0 Tijeras......................... 25 48 27 46 / 0 0 0 0 Edgewood........................ 22 47 24 47 / 0 0 0 0 Moriarty/Estancia............... 19 45 20 47 / 0 0 0 0 Clines Corners.................. 22 41 22 43 / 0 0 0 0 Mountainair..................... 23 50 26 47 / 0 0 0 0 Gran Quivira.................... 24 51 26 48 / 0 0 0 0 Carrizozo....................... 28 54 30 53 / 0 0 0 0 Ruidoso......................... 30 51 31 50 / 0 0 0 0 Capulin......................... 17 51 19 42 / 0 0 0 0 Raton........................... 15 54 17 46 / 0 0 0 0 Springer........................ 14 52 17 47 / 0 0 0 0 Las Vegas....................... 20 50 20 45 / 0 0 0 0 Clayton......................... 23 59 27 49 / 0 0 0 0 Roy............................. 19 54 22 46 / 0 0 0 0 Conchas......................... 22 61 25 53 / 0 0 0 0 Santa Rosa...................... 25 55 26 51 / 0 0 0 0 Tucumcari....................... 23 64 26 54 / 0 0 0 0 Clovis.......................... 25 63 30 56 / 0 0 0 0 Portales........................ 24 64 27 56 / 0 0 0 0 Fort Sumner..................... 25 61 27 55 / 0 0 0 0 Roswell......................... 27 67 34 61 / 0 0 0 0 Picacho......................... 30 63 34 59 / 0 0 0 0 Elk............................. 28 62 30 60 / 0 0 0 0 && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Wind Advisory from 6 AM to 2 PM MST Saturday for NMZ214-215-223. && $$ SHORT TERM...25 LONG TERM....25 AVIATION...42