Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Boise, ID
Issued by NWS Boise, ID
473 FXUS65 KBOI 080350 AFDBOI Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Boise ID 850 PM MST Sun Dec 7 2025 .DISCUSSION...Radar pcpn echoes have generally ended in our CWA this evening and no further pcpn is expected overnight and most of Monday. A well-defined atmospheric river along 40-45N in the Pacific was nearing the WA coast this evening, and models aim it across the northern zones of our CWA Monday evening. This will begin a lengthy period of moderate to heavy rain (snow level 7000-8000 feet) in our northern zones Monday night through Wednesday, with the atmospheric river shifting slowly northward as a warm front. Wednesday will become unseasonably warm (and drying by Thursday) and will stay warm and dry through Saturday. Saturday may be so warm aloft that an inversion will form in the valleys below, but with little if any snow on the ground the inversion should be weak. A cooler upper trough is finally forecast inland from the north Pacific next Sunday. No sign of winter weather through at least Dec 14. No updates. && .AVIATION...Generally VFR, except low stratus/fog in mountains creating mtn obscuration. Patchy valley fog Monday AM. Precip increasing from the northwest Monday PM, heaviest north of Snake Plain. Periods of MVFR-LIFR in moderate/heavy rain, or in snow. Snow levels Monday PM: 7k-8k feet MSL in E Oregon, 6k-7k feet in SW Idaho. Surface winds: SW-SE 5-15 kt, Monday PM gusts to 20-30 kt in E Oregon and mtns of SW Idaho. Pockets of LLWS tonight, including KEUL-KBOI. Winds aloft at 10kft MSL: NW 25-40 kt. KBOI...Generally VFR, but up to 10% chance of low ceilings/mist developing early Monday AM. Low level wind shear tonight, decreasing after Mon/09Z. Rain returns after Tue/00Z. Surface winds: SE 4-10 kt. && .PREV DISCUSSION... SHORT TERM...Tonight through Tuesday night...A weak warm front has brought light precipitation to the area today. Precipitation should taper off later this afternoon with mild temperatures continuing. A lull in precipitation is expected on Monday before another warm front moves through. The next warm front arrives on Monday evening, with widespread precipitation north of a line from Burns OR to Jerome ID through Tuesday night. Warm and moist zonal flow continues over the next several days as a significant atmospheric river impacts the Pacific NW across WA, northern ID and western MT. The central ID mountains will see significant precipitation, but far less amounts compared to northern ID. Snow will be confined to the highest peaks above 7000-8000 feet. LONG TERM...Wednesday through Sunday...Low pressure aloft in the Gulf of Alaska and high pressure off the coast of California are creating a strong pressure gradient, pulling a significantly warm and moist airmass through the area Wednesday through Thursday. Mid-level flow remains at 50-70 kt with PWs near records for this time of year. Winds in ridges, open areas, and highlands gust up to 45 mph at the surface. These winds, orography, and the moisture will bring an extended period of precipitation chances greater than 70% in higher terrain. Rainfall/liquid equivalent Wednesday through Thursday is an extra 0.5-1.5 inches in higher terrain and up to 0.1 inches in lower elevations on top of what fell in the short term. The strong flow and warm airmass bring snow levels up to a staggering 7-9 kft MSL both of these days, so while the highest peaks will see half a foot to a foot of snow, mountains below about 8kft MSL will see predominantly rain. The prolonged rainfall on a barely developed snowpack would produce runoff and have long-lived impacts on the snowpack going into the winter. The strong flow aloft tapers off into Friday as the moisture plume goes north of the Pacific high as it moves inland. The weather will generally dry out and winds will die down as the ridge builds overhead. The ridging will make valley inversions possible and thus fog and low stratus with saturated soils. With the warmer airmass, temperatures above any inversion will be 15-20 degrees above normal throughout the long-term period. The possibility of inverted conditions introduces uncertainty in valley temperatures late in the week as colder air could get trapped near the surface. Models begin to diverge by the end of Sunday, with some hints at a return to colder temps and more precip in the extended forecast. && .BOI WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... ID...None. OR...None. && $$ www.weather.gov/Boise Interact with us via social media: www.facebook.com/NWSBoise www.x.com/NWSBoise DISCUSSION...LC AVIATION.....SH SHORT TERM...KA LONG TERM....JM/LC