Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Blacksburg, VA
Issued by NWS Blacksburg, VA
578 FXUS61 KRNK 250101 AFDRNK Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Blacksburg VA 801 PM EST Mon Nov 24 2025 .SYNOPSIS... High pressure will allow for dry conditions through tonight, with increasing clouds this evening. The next weather system nears from the west on Tuesday, bringing chances of rain through Wednesday. A more potent front moves through the region on Wednesday and a much colder airmass is expected for Thanksgiving and beyond. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TUESDAY/... As of 800 PM EST Monday... No major changes were made to the forecast this evening. Some light showers look to be moving through central West Virginia this evening; however, these showers will likely not reach our area in SE West Virginia until closer to day break. Previous Discussion: Key Messages: 1) Pleasant weather today with increasing clouds this evening and tonight. 2) Rain chances increase Tuesday with gusty winds across the ridges. Upper trough will swing through the Plains this evening and into the Great Lakes region on Tuesday. High pressure providing sunny skies and dry conditions will slide east into the Atlantic tonight. Warm air advection will increase through the overnight in advance of an approaching frontal boundary associated with the upper wave progged to move north of the region. In response, will see increase cloud cover and eventually some showers/drizzle developing along the Blue Ridge late tonight into early Tuesday. Better chance for rain comes late morning and into the afternoon/evening as the front moves closer to the region, but overall rainfall amounts still appear to be light, around 0.25 inches or less. Increasing southerly jet will result in gusty winds along the ridges, especially on the downslope side of the western slopes. Some gusts into the 20mph range, perhaps around 30mph at times for areas from Burkes Garden to Bluefield and along the I77 corridor in West Virginia. && .SHORT TERM /TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/... As of 1235 PM EST Monday... Key Messages: 1) Showers and a thunderstorm or two are possible Tuesday night, with highest coverage across the Piedmont. 2) A strong cold front will arrive Wednesday evening, bringing a sharp cooldown for Thanksgiving day. Little change in the previous forecast thinking for Tuesday night as a disturbance makes its way across the lower Mid-Atlantic. Some forecast data continues to suggest the disturbance will trigger a band of rain across the Piedmont before dawn on Wednesday, with this band having the potential for a few embedded thunderstorms and brief downpours. Given the recent dry conditions however, flooding is not anticipated with this activity. As the disturbance moves away Wednesday morning, it will leave only occasional shower activity in its wake, with continued unseasonably warm temperatures through the afternoon. During early Wednesday evening, a strong cold front will push quickly across the lower Mid-Atlantic, bringing with it significantly cooler and drier air that will linger through the remainder of the period. Still signals in the latest weather data indicating a brief period of snow across western Greenbrier County during late Wednesday evening as temperatures drop to freezing, however moisture is not forecast to remain long enough for any snow accumulations. High pressure building in behind the cold front will bring mostly clear skies and breezy west winds for Thanksgiving, with temperatures some 10 to 15 degrees below normal for late November. && .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... As of 1245 PM EST Monday... Key Messages: 1) Cool and dry weather on Friday will give way to wet weather on Sunday with seasonable temperatures. 2) A brief period of a wintry mix of snow, sleet and/or freezing rain is possible on Saturday night. The weekend will start off with continued chilly temperatures as high pressure passes from the central Mississippi River Valley early Friday to the Atlantic coast on Saturday evening. Friday afternoon highs will struggle to reach freezing across portions of the mountains, with temperatures overall holding 15-20 degrees below normal. Temperatures for Saturday will trend warmer however as winds shift more from the south. Heading into Saturday night, cloud cover will increase as the next low pressure system approaches from the west. Given lingering cold air across the Mid-Atlantic, there is a chance that precipitation moving into our area will start as a brief period of a wintry mix of snow, sleet and/or freezing rain, before temperatures warm enough to change precipitation over to rain. Periods of rain will then linger through the day on Sunday as a cold front approaches from the west. && .AVIATION /00Z TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... As of 700 PM EST Monday... VFR conditions are being observed at all terminals across the area this evening; however, restrictions are expected to develop during the mid morning hours on Tuesday as a low pressure system works its way into the region. These restrictions will initially start out as MVFR through the mid morning and early afternoon hours before becoming IFR and potentially LIFR at a few locations west of the Blue Ridge. These restrictions look to develop in conjunction with the heaviest of rainfall that will move through the area during the 16-22 UTC timeframe on Tuesday. As these restrictions worsen, they appear to linger through the end of the TAF period, with likely gradual improvement expected on Wednesday. Southerly winds look to remain mostly calm during the overnight hours, but will slowly increase on Tuesday with gusts of 15 to 20 knots forecast across the area. Mountain terminals to include ROA, BCB, LWB, and BLF look to see gusts closer to those 20 knots or even occasional gusts up to 25 knots at times through the afternoon and evening on Tuesday. Gusty southerly winds look to continue through the end of the TAF window on 00 UTC Wednesday. Finally, some LLWS can`t be ruled out at ROA and BCB Tuesday evening as a southwesterly LLJ at the 850mb level increases to around 45-50 knots. This combined with weakening winds in the evening will lead to some LLWS just off the deck when planes are taking off and landing. .Extended Aviation Outlook... A strong front will increase winds Wednesday night and into Thursday. Some low-level wind shear will be possible. VFR conditions return Thursday and Friday. && .RNK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... VA...None. NC...None. WV...None. && $$ SYNOPSIS...BMG NEAR TERM...BMG/EB SHORT TERM...NF LONG TERM...NF AVIATION...BMG/EB