Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Portland, OR
Issued by NWS Portland, OR
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571 FXUS66 KPQR 021137 AAA AFDPQR Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED National Weather Service Portland OR 437 AM PDT Tue Jun 2 2026 Updated aviation discussion. .SYNOPSIS...High pressure will maintain very warm and dry conditions today. Moderate HeatRisk is expected along the I-5 Corridor north of Salem, including the Portland/Vancouver Metro. Cooler temperatures return Wednesday to Thursday as a weak shortwave trough swings through the region. Slight chances for showers along the coast, Coast Range, and Cascades on Wednesday. Cool trend continues at the end of the week as a deeper trough arrives from the Gulf of Alaska, returning widespread chances for rain Friday into the weekend. && .SHORT TERM...Now through Thursday Night...High pressure remains anchored over the region which will maintain hot and dry conditions today. Easterly flow aloft combined with temperatures of around 15 deg C at 5000 ft will keep overnight lows on the warm side which sets the stage for a near record breaking high temperature forecast. Overall looking at high temperatures today in the mid 80s from Corvallis south, and in the 90s north of Salem in the lowlands. In the Greater Portland/Vancouver Metro highs are forecast to be just above record highs. Along the coast, the weak offshore flow will keep temperatures on the warmer side as well as downsloping off of the Coast Range will enhance warming. Could see highs in the mid 70s along the coast, especially around Tillamook which tends to run warmer than other locations on days like today. Moderate HeatRisk remains for today for all of Multnomah and Clark County, much of Washington and Columbia County, and along the Lower I-5 Corridor. More urban areas of Clackamas County are within this category as well. Elsewhere, Minor HeatRisk dominates. The warm temperatures will be short lived though as a negatively tilted trough along the leading edge of a low pressure system in the Gulf of Alaska drops down. This trough will transition the flow into a zonal onshore flow pattern and thus usher in cooler and more moist air. There remains a chance for precipitation, but the probabilities are quite low with the only areas with chances above 15% being along the coast, Coast Range and spots within the Cascades. The mass of dry air leading into this trough will decay most of the rain that would normally reach the ground in a more moist scenario. It is not uncommon for these troughs to be sacrificed to weaken the ridge allowing for more precipitation to follow. Thursday will generally be dry with seasonable temperatures in the mid 70s inland and in the 60s along the coast. -27 .LONG TERM...Friday through Monday...Very little change in the forecast on Friday as onshore flow persists and the low pressure system in the Gulf of Alaska remains nearly stationary. However, overnight into Saturday is a different story as the low aloft drops down over the northern Washington coast, and is coupled with a low pressure system at the surface. This is a very energetic system with strong vorticity advection and climatologically abnormal CAPE over the marine waters. With ample support, there are increasing chances for more widespread rain. However, the most robust portion of this system will be well to our north as we sit on the southern edge of the low. Therefore, could see less of a stratiform rain and trend towards a convective/showery pattern. Due to the combination of increased instability with cooler air aloft, there is around a 15-20% chance for thunderstorms over southwest Washington and far northwest Oregon on Saturday afternoon. Accumulation of rainfall remains uncertain as there is a) still ample time for this system to evolve, b) the location of the low will come into play - if it shifts south we could see heavier rain, and c) the convective nature of the overall pattern. 24 hour precipitation as described by the NBM continues to show quite a large range of possibilities though the "high end" amounts are less than in previous runs. The 07Z Run currently shows the 10th-90th percentile spread around 0.00 inch to 0.60 inch along the coast and around the Portland area. The 90th percentile (high end amount) is around 1.0 inch in Battle Ground and 1.25 inch along the south Washington Cascades. Storm total 48 hour precipitation ending 5 AM Sunday has a high end precipitation total of around 1.0 inch along the coast, 0.25 inch in the southern Willamette Valley, around 0.75-0.9 inch in southwest Washington and northern Willamette Valley and around 1.25 inch in the Gifford Pinchot and Mt Hood Natl Forests. Overall, the rain is non-impactful. Transitioning into Sunday and Monday there will be some lingering showers but overall weather appears to be more settled. One thing we will have to watch is a cut-off low that some of the ensembles are attempting to produce on Sunday night. This cut-off low creates almost like a double barrel low type situation along the coast. The impacts are unrealized at this time but again, something to watch moving forward. -27 && .AVIATION...Generally VFR over the next 24 hours with light winds becoming northerly in the early afternoon. After 00Z Wed, a frontal system will advance towards the coast which will cause winds to shift to the south-southwest and usher in more moisture. Most terminals will remain VFR, but along the coast there is around a 40-60% chance of at least MVFR CIGs after 03Z Wed. Stratus will begin to form around KONP then move northward through the morning. The big challenge in the forecast is wind direction. Overall, there is not a very strong trend towards one wind direction. However speeds will be less than 10 kt in most inland locations so impacts should be minimal. KPDX AND APPROACHES...VFR over the next 24 hours. Weak easterly flow this morning will transition to the N-NW later in the afternoon into the evening as onshore flow returns. Eventually winds will shift to the south. -27/99 && .MARINE...Settled conditions as surface high pressure remains over the waters. The high will shift inland today which will allow for the north/south pressure gradient to decrease and thus winds continue to ease. Looking at winds north to northwesterly winds of 5-10 kt with gusts up to 20 kt through the early afternoon then they shift to the west. Seas will remain around 5-7 ft at 10 seconds. Winds turn southwesterly ahead of a decaying front tonight into Wednesday. Rain shower chances increase to 20-45% beyond 20-30 NM Wednesday morning, before winds back out of the northwest by Wednesday afternoon behind the boundary. Seas of 4-7 ft at 8-10 seconds with a dominant WNW swell continue through midweek. Generally unsettled weather looks to remain over the Northeast Pacific through the remainder of the week. The dominant swell will shift out of the west, with seas rising to 6-9 ft at 10-12 seconds into the weekend. Northwest winds persist through Friday morning, when another front may bring further rain chances into the weekend.-27/36 && .PQR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OR...None. WA...None. PZ...None. && $$ www.weather.gov/portland Interact with us via social media: www.facebook.com/NWSPortland x.com/NWSPortland