Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS St. Louis, MO
Issued by NWS St. Louis, MO
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561 FXUS63 KLSX 030955 AFDLSX Area Forecast Discussion...Updated Aviation National Weather Service Saint Louis MO 455 AM CDT Wed Jun 3 2026 .KEY MESSAGES... - Dry weather continues today and Thursday with temperatures warming from the low 80s today to the mid 80s on Thursday. - Temperatures continue to warm into the mid and upper 80s this weekend, and more early summer-like humidity returns along with the chance for showers and thunderstorms. && .SHORT TERM... (Through Late Thursday Afternoon) Issued at 324 AM CDT Wed Jun 3 2026 A surface high centered over the Great Lakes region combined with ridging aloft will continue to produce calm and dry weather for the Mid Mississippi Valley today. The light wind and mostly clear sky this morning will allow temperatures to sink into the mid and upper 50s in most locations by sunrise, and even the lower 50s in some of our cooler spots. Despite this morning`s lows being 3-5 degrees below normal, strong early June sunshine will raise temperatures 25+ degrees this afternoon into the low 80s. The blocky high amplitude pattern with an upper ridge over the central U.S. and troughs to the east and west will slowly attenuate and shift east tonight through Thursday. This will move the surface high from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Coast by late Thursday afternoon. Surface winds become more southerly across the Mid Mississippi Valley tonight as this eastward shift happens which will keep temperatures a few degrees warmer in the mid 50s to around 60. Highs Thursday afternoon will be correspondingly warmer in the mid 80s. Carney && .LONG TERM... (Thursday Night through Tuesday) Issued at 324 AM CDT Wed Jun 3 2026 The pattern shift causes the western trough to fracture and the resulting northern stream short wave drifts into the Plains Thursday into Thursday night. This short wave gets attenuated somewhat as it encounters the ridge, but it`s strong enough to force weak low level cyclogenesis over the Plains, thus enhancing south-southwest flow and moisture return over the Midwest Thursday night into Friday. Deterministic guidance develops convection Friday afternoon over eastern Nebraska and Kansas into northwest Missouri and Iowa, then moves the storms east into the evening. Storms will likely be weakening as they move into our area Friday night with the loss of daytime heating and overall weaker instability over the Mid Mississippi Valley. Rain chances continue as the short wave aloft migrates east and pushes a weak cold front into northern Missouri and central Illinois Saturday. Then, the southern stream upper low left over from the earlier trough fracture drifts northeast into the Plains on Sunday bringing more moisture and instability to the region. The upper pattern re-amplifies as this happens and another blocking ridge sets up over the Ohio Valley and Great Lakes which slows and nearly stops the wave over the Midwest. The majority of LREF members (60-75%) produce precipitation at some point Sunday through Tuesday, primarily during the daytime hours which points toward diurnal showers and thunderstorms. However the cluster analysis also shows variance in the amplitude of the wave as well as the position of the blocking downstream ridge, so there is still some uncertainty in this forecast. Temperatures through the period look seasonably warm in the mid to upper 80s, but afternoon convection could suppress temperatures any day. Carney && .AVIATION... (For the 12z TAFs through 12z Thursday Morning) Issued at 454 AM CDT Wed Jun 3 2026 VFR flight conditions are expected to prevail through the period. Light east-southeast winds will turn to the southeast and then to the south by early Thursday morning. Carney && .LSX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MO...None. IL...None. && $$ WFO LSX