


Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Seattle/Tacoma, WA
Issued by NWS Seattle/Tacoma, WA
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478 FXUS66 KSEW 012147 AFDSEW Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Seattle WA 247 PM PDT Mon Sep 1 2025 .SYNOPSIS...Upper level ridging will build back into western Washington this afternoon and will continue through much of this week. A warming and drying trend will continue through at least midweek, with daytime temperatures well above normal. Some slight cooling and potentially more active weather is may be possible by the end of the week. && .SHORT TERM /TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY/...Latest satellite imagery shows the widespread marine stratus from this morning slowly starting to burn back. Stratus will continue to dissipate leading way to generally sunny skies later this evening. Along with sunny skies, likely will see some haze from existing wildfires across the area. Smoke will mostly be aloft, limiting any air quality concerns for the time being. High temperatures this afternoon will remain in the mid to upper 70s across much of the area. Upper level ridging will start to build more influence through the area on Tuesday, with temperatures warming into the upper 70s into the lower 80s throughout much of the interior. Areas in the Cascade valleys will warm even further.. with temperatures in the upper 80s into the mid 90s expected, especially areas like Packwood, Marblemount, and Darrington. Moderate (Orange) HeatRisk are expected throughout much of area, excluding the coast, where Yellow (Minor) HeatRisk values will exist. Warm and dry conditions will further into Wednesday, with temperatures warming into the mid 80s for interior areas and mid 90s for the valleys. The Cascade valleys will not get much relief as slight offshore flow keeps those areas warm and dry, with localized pockets of Major (Red) HeatRisk. Therefore, a Heat Advisory has been issued for the Cascade Valleys until Thursday evening for prolonged warm and dry conditions. Again, the emphasis is on the Cascade valleys for the hottest temperatures. An upper low offshore will start to influence western Washington slightly, with temperatures being a touch cooler across the area on Thursday with the arrival of onshore flow. Some of this onshore flow may not reach the Cascades, so temperatures in those areas will still remain warm (in the upper 80s.) .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY/...Ensembles are continuing to struggle with the path of the aforementioned low. For now, it looks like troughiness and this low will have influence over the pattern, resulting in a gradual cool down into the weekend. Some ensembles have introduced some monsoonal moisture coming up into the region on Friday/Saturday, which could help churn out some isolated showers and or thunderstorms, particularly over the mountains, during those time frames. Confidence is low at this time but have mentioned the slight chance precipitation during those times. Temperatures look to still be above seasonal normals, but stay in the mid to upper 70s. Mazurkiewicz && .AVIATION...South to southeasterly flow aloft will continue into Tuesday as an upper low slides further offshore and ridging builds into Western Washington. Stratus continues to slowly clear and lift this afternoon around Puget Sound, with with MVFR cigs also lingering along the coast. VFR conditions with high clouds at times this evening into tonight for interior sites. Stratus will spread inland again early Tuesday morning into Puget Sound, resulting in IFR cigs for the interior, with areas of LIFR, especially along the coast. Stratus will likely clear a bit quicker on Tuesday as an upper ridge builds into the area, with VFR for Tuesday afternoon. In addition, haze may increase aloft through tonight due to wildfires in WA/OR. Light W/SW winds will transition more NW on Tuesday. KSEA...VFR conditions will continue into early tonight. Stratus will spread inland towards Puget Sound early Tuesday morning. At this time there is approximately a 25 to 30% chance of IFR cigs from 11z to 18z. Cigs will likely clear a bit quicker on Tuesday, with VFR conditions generally by 20z. Light west winds will transition more northerly around 02z and remain light N into Tuesday morning. JD && .MARINE...A deep low pressure system will remain stationed offshore through the week with high pressure building inland. Onshore flow will continue with this pattern. This will result in westerly pushes through the Strait of Juan de Fuca. At this time, SCA winds are not expected through Thursday for the Strait of Juan de Fuca, with a stronger westerly push possible late Friday. Otherwise northerly winds will increase along the Coastal Waters late Wednesday into Thursday, and will need to monitor for SCA wind gusts during this period. Otherwise, northerly winds will increase each afternoon for Puget Sound. Seas of 3 to 5 feet will build to 4 to 6 feet Wednesday and continue through late week. JD && .FIRE WEATHER...Gradually hotter temperatures and very dry conditions will continue to develop each of the next several days. These conditions, coupled with light offshore flow during the day, will likely result in elevated fire conditions around Wednesday in the Cascades. These factors will also yield poor to moderate RH recovery in the mid-slopes and ridgetops as the inversion strengthens overnight, followed by good mixing in the afternoon hours. Marine influence may limit how low daytime RHs drop for areas near Puget Sound and through the I-5 corridor, but conditions remain elevated to the east in the Cascades. Isolated thunderstorm chances increase late in the week as monsoonal moisture increases across parts of the region, though confidence remains low in the specifics. && .SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WA...Heat Advisory from noon Tuesday to 5 PM PDT Thursday for Foothills and Valleys of Central King County-Foothills and Valleys of Pierce and Southern King Counties-Foothills and Valleys of Snohomish and Northern King Counties-Foothills and Valleys of Thurston and Lewis Counties-Foothills and Valleys of the North Cascades. PZ...None. && $$