Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Boise, ID
Issued by NWS Boise, ID
203 FXUS65 KBOI 221617 AFDBOI Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Boise ID 917 AM MST Sat Nov 22 2025 .DISCUSSION...Many valley areas waking up to low stratus and areas of fog this morning. Satellite imagery indicates these conditions are widespread across most of the region, and observations are showing dense fog in portions of Baker County, the lower Treasure Valley of Oregon, and the Magic Valley. High pressure remains in control overhead, with a series of troughs to the west over the Pacific. The ridge of high pressure will keep inversion conditions in place today into Sunday, with guidance suggesting mixing from the surface up to 2500-3000 feet above ground level. This should allow for most locations to eventually mix out low level stratus by the afternoon, but will likely mean a return overnight (70% chance for Lower Treasure Valley of Oregon). Dense Fog Advisory in effect through 9am PT/10am MT for Baker Valley and the Magic Valley. Expect improving conditions through the day. The current forecast handles the situation well with no further updates planned this morning. && .AVIATION...Areas of LIFR-MVFR this morning in fog/low stratus. Conditions improving to VFR around 17-18z. Surface winds: S-E 5-10 kt. Winds aloft at 10kft MSL: S-W 5-15 kt. KBOI...VFR under mostly sunny skies. Surface winds: SE 5-10 kt. Sunday Outlook...Areas of valley fog/low stratus Sunday morning with improvement in the afternoon. A cold front late Sunday will bring light precipitation mainly to northern areas and mountain obscuration. Snow levels 5500-6500 ft MSL Sunday evening, falling to 3000-4500 ft MSL by Monday morning. Surface winds: SE-SW less than 10 kt early Sunday, then SW-NW 5-15 kt Sunday night. && .AIR STAGNATION...High pressure aloft will continue through Sunday night, with daytime mixing heights peaking between 1500 and 2500 feet AGL in the valleys. Relatively light winds and a low-level inversion will continue to limit ventilation in most valleys. A cold front late Sunday into early Monday morning will bring increased west to northwest winds, improving mixing and ventilation. && .PREV DISCUSSION... SHORT TERM...Today through Monday night...An upper level ridge over the region today into Sunday will bring dry and stable conditions. Fog and stratus have been limited by high clouds and light southerly winds so far this morning. We could see an increase in Fog/Stratus coverage for the Snake River Plain later this morning between 7 AM and 10 AM, with the best chance across south central Idaho, including the Magic Valley. Valleys and basins in eastern Oregon and west central Idaho will also see periods of fog through the early afternoon. However, widespread dense fog advisory appears unlikely at this time. We will end the Dense Fog Advisory for all zones except the Western Magic Valley. Drying south to east winds are expected to increase this afternoon, which will help lift and dissipate fog and stratus, yielding mostly sunny conditions for most. Stratus could remain longer across the sheltered valleys of eastern Oregon. The increased winds today along with mostly clear skies should allow temperatures to warm about 4 to 7 degrees above normal. High res models indicate stratus redeveloping tonight mainly across the Lower Treasure Valley and Upper Weiser Basin along with Baker Valley. This is pretty typical for this type of event as what remains of the boundary layer moisture pools at the lowest part of the valley. Given the drier near surface air, widespread fog appears unlikely. Warm and dry on Sunday with increasing southeasterly surface winds ahead of the next cold frontal passage. This system will move across the region late Sunday into early Monday, bringing precipitation mainly to the Central Idaho mountains Monday morning. There is about a 20 percent chance of rain showers in the valley Monday morning. Snow levels start out around 6000 feet Sunday night and fall to between 2500 to 3500 feet late Monday morning with passage of the front. Thus, light snow is possible above 5000 feet, with between 1 to 2 inches expected. Breezy northwesterly winds will bring near normal temperatures, which should mix out the valley inversion. LONG TERM...Tuesday through Saturday...The front end of a large amplifying ridge is expected to build into the region Tuesday through Thursday. This ridging will bring drier conditions through most of Tuesday, but peak lower elevation temperatures are expected to remain in the lower 40s. Valley temperatures are expected to take on a slight warming trend from the mid/upper 40s into the lower 50s Wednesday through Friday. The aforementioned ridging pattern is expected to steer a plume of moisture off the Pacific NW coast into the area late Tuesday to the end of the week, favoring a 20-30% chance of precipitation in lower elevations and a 50-60% chance in higher elevations everyday of the extended forecast period. Snow levels are expected to take on an upward trend from the 3000-4000 ft range Tuesday and early Wednesday into the 5000-6000 ft range late Wednesday to the end of the week. Mountain locations may get some wintry mix in precipitation throughout the week. A longwave trough, with some guidance uncertainty on the arrival pattern, is generally expected to dig into the area Friday through Saturday, favoring widespread precipitation and a cooling trend throughout the area towards the end of the extended. && .BOI WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... ID...Dense Fog Advisory until 10 AM MST this morning IDZ016. OR...Dense Fog Advisory until 9 AM PST this morning ORZ062. && $$ www.weather.gov/Boise Interact with us via social media: www.facebook.com/NWSBoise www.x.com/NWSBoise DISCUSSION...MC AVIATION.....NF AIR STAGNATION...MC SHORT TERM...JDS LONG TERM....JY