Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Omaha/Valley, NE
Issued by NWS Omaha/Valley, NE
Versions:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
562 FXUS63 KOAX 240908 AFDOAX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Omaha/Valley NE 308 AM CST Mon Nov 24 2025 .KEY MESSAGES... - Rain will gradually overspread the area this morning, with most accumulation ending by early afternoon, but some lingering spotty light showers/sprinkles into this evening. Totals will be under 0.25" for most. - Windy conditions expected Tuesday with gusts of 35 to 50 mph, highest in northeast Nebraska. This may lead to fire weather concerns depending how much rain falls today. - Continue to monitor the forecast from Thanksgiving into the weekend as potential exists for snowfall and travel impacts. However, confidence in specific details remains low at this time. && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 308 AM CST Mon Nov 24 2025 Early morning analysis showed a cutoff low spinning along the CO/KS border with associated rain arcing from south-central CO into central and southeastern NE and south/southwest all the way to TX. There wasn`t much coverage across the forecast area as of 3 AM, but that should change shortly when stronger isentropic ascent starts to push in as the low starts to edge farther east. Latest CAMs are in reasonable agreement that we`ll see an area of showery precip overspread the area through the morning with chances for most of the area in the 60-80% range. Guidance also hints that there could be a tiny bit of elevated instability in place which could lead to a rumble of thunder or 2, but chances are pretty slim (10% or less at a given location). That initial area of precip should largely exit to our east by noon, though guidance is in decent agreement that we`ll have some lingering spotty, light showers or sprinkles into the afternoon/early evening as the shortwave trough axis passes through and the low moves by to our south. When it`s all said and done, rain totals will mostly be under 0.25", though a few spots (mainly northeast NE) could see amounts approach 0.50". Otherwise, expect highs in the lower to mid 50s today with at least some patchy fog developing again overnight into early Tuesday. For the daytime hours on Tuesday, the primary concern will be strong northwest winds. A shortwave trough will push through the Dakotas with a surface low just ahead of it that will drag a cold front through the area early in the day. Behind the front, many model soundings show 40-50+ mph winds at the top of the mixed layer, while ensemble guidance shows mean surface wind gusts of similar values and HREF shows a 60-90% chance of seeing Wind Advisory level winds in northeast NE. In addition, subsidence behind the front should further help to bring those stronger winds to the surface, with a few ensemble members suggesting we could even make a run toward High Wind Warning criteria (58 mph gusts). There was some discussion of issuing a High Wind Watch, but decided against it in our forecast area, as confidence is fairly low that we see more than just a few sporadic gusts of that level. We`ll also need to keep an eye on potential for some snow to clip far northeast NE as the surface low deepens over MN and some moisture wraps around the back side. For now, have a 15% chance in Knox/Cedar counties. If we do happen to get any decent snow showers, the snow combined with these winds could lead to some travel impacts. Surface high pressure builds in behind the front and should keep things quiet Wednesday and Thursday. However, we`ll be much cooler, with highs in the mid 30s to lower 40s. For Friday, guidance is starting to come into better agreement regarding potential for a band of snow to set up somewhere across the Dakotas and southeastward into some combination of NE/IA/MN. Model consensus gives a 30-50% chance of at least 1" of snow in northeast NE into west-central IA through midnight Friday night. However, still a lot of finer scale details to be worked out like timing, temperatures, and exact location. Bottom line, it`s looking more likely that somewhere in the region could see some minor travel impacts on Friday. Unfortunately, from Saturday onward, there remains a lot of spread in guidance regarding additional rain/snow chances. Some shortwave energy does look to move through behind the frontogenesis band sometime Saturday and lead to a little more widespread precipitation development. However, confidence is very low on precipitation type and where it develops, with many solutions keeping it mostly to our east and some developing it right over our area. There`s even more model spread heading into Sunday as a longwave trough digs into the western CONUS with some solutions suggesting some shortwave energy on the eastern periphery interacts with a boundary still in the area and leads to even more precipitation, including some snow. Meanwhile, other solutions suggest the boundary is well out of the area and incoming shortwave energy is weak, with only spotty additional precip at best. So bottom line, forecast confidence regarding precipitation for the weekend into early next week is quite low. Most ensemble members give at least somewhere in the area enough snow for some travel impacts, but details on timing, location, and degree of impacts are very fuzzy at this point. If you have travel plans, continue to closely monitor the forecast. What we are more confident in is even cooler air arrives by Sunday into early next week, with highs in the mid 20s to lower 30s. && .AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z TUESDAY/... Issued at 1110 PM CST Sun Nov 23 2025 The fog over northern Missouri and western Iowa has remained east of OMA this evening. Low ceilings, rain showers, and fog continue to slowly lift northeast from Kansas. The progression of these features has been a bit slower than anticipated. Over the next couple hours, ceilings will gradually fall. From southwest to northeast, MVFR ceilings and light fog is anticipated to begin to cause impacts between 09-10Z this morning at LNK and OFK initially. OMA follows a short time later. Ceilings will continue to quickly fall to IFR after this. IFR ceilings may arrive sooner than forecast, but upstream observations are mixed between MVFR and IFR conditions. Rain showers and patchy fog will accompany the IFR ceilings with visibility reductions likely as a result. That said, fluctuating visibility is anticipated at times. IFR ceilings are expected to remain around 700 ft. A brief reduction to below 500 ft could develop, but confidence is low and the majority of guidance remains above this threshold. Rain showers and fog will dissipate or exit the area by mid-morning, around 15Z. IFR ceilings are expected to remain through the afternoon. Winds will be light and southerly for all terminals during this TAF period. Trends will continue to be monitored as this system progresses into the region. && .OAX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NE...None. IA...None. && $$ DISCUSSION...CA AVIATION...Chehak