


Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Jackson, KY
Issued by NWS Jackson, KY
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254 FXUS63 KJKL 021100 AAA AFDJKL AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED National Weather Service Jackson KY 700 AM EDT Sat Aug 2 2025 .KEY MESSAGES... - There is a possibility of showers and thunderstorms at times through the next week, mainly during the afternoon and evening hours on most days. - This break from the heat and humidity will continue into the start of the new week. && .UPDATE... Issued at 645 AM EDT SAT AUG 2 2025 Updated the forecast to tamp down the fog as the low clouds have built in enough, when combined with light northeast winds, to keep the visibility concerns to a minimum at sunrise. Did also include the latest obs and trends for the T/Td/Sky grids with this update. These adjustments have been sent to the NDFD and web servers along with a freshening of the zones, SAFs, and HWO. && .SHORT TERM...(Today through Sunday) Issued at 445 AM EDT SAT AUG 2 2025 08Z sfc analysis shows high pressure to the north of Kentucky with low pressure now off to the southeast. The passage of a cold front has brought a refreshing air mass to this part of the state - most evident in the Bluegrass Region with clear skies, lower dewpoints and northeast winds of around 5 mph overnight. Elsewhere, more moisture is found at ground level leading to areas of fog - locally dense in the valleys - along with patches of low clouds. The clouds and light northeast winds are working to counter the development and expansion of the fog early this morning but some dense patches remain. Otherwise, temperatures vary from the pleasant upper 50s in the northwest to the mid and upper 60s in the far southeast. Meanwhile, dewpoints range from the lower 50s northwest to the low to mid 60s in the southeast. The models, and their individual ensemble suites, are still in pretty good agreement aloft through the short term portion of the forecast. They all depict the northeast trough exiting the country later today but it does leave behind some weakness over the Ohio Valley and Kentucky with lowering 5h heights noted into midday Sunday. During this process, plenty of left behind energy will pool nearby through the rest of the weekend with some impact on our sensible weather. The relatively small model spread through Sunday evening again supported using the NBM as the starting point for the forecast grids with minimal adjustments needed - mainly just to tweak the PoPs for aspects of the diurnal cycle and details from the latest CAMs consensus guidance. Sensible weather features another rather cool and less humid day as clouds hold in over much of the area. With some support from aloft, expect the diurnal instability cycle to facilitate the development of some convection in the southeast parts of eastern Kentucky later this afternoon. For today, low clouds and early morning valley fog will clear out through the first part of the day. Cool temperatures will again be the rule tonight, with another bout of valley fog anticipated - locally dense where the sky are mostly clear. The chances of convection will minimize overnight but never quite go away in the southern parts of the JKL CWA. These chances increase through the day Sunday - pushed by the diurnal heating cycle. The best shot at thunderstorms will be in the afternoon for the Cumberland Valley on Sunday. The changes to the NBM starting point were primarily focused on the diurnal nature to the PoPs each day while also incorporating the details of the CAMs consensus guidance. Temperatures were not changed much with just some extra drying added to the dewpoints each afternoon. .LONG TERM...(Sunday night through Friday) Issued at 515 AM EDT SAT AUG 2 2025 Again the NBM forecast seemed reasonable through the extended with only some minor adjustments made to specific spot temperatures each day amid the overall trend of rising highs during the week along with daily threats of showers and storms, mainly highest in the PM. The previous long term discussion follows: Guidance still has the period beginning with the region within an area of broad upper level troughing extending from the Lower OH Valley to Gulf in between an upper level ridge centered in the western Atlantic and another upper level ridge centered in northwest Mexico/the southwest Conus. At the surface, a frontal zone is expected to extend into northern FL across the northern Gulf to the Southern Plains and then north into parts of the Central to Northern Plains while a ridge of sfc high pressure should extend from the Northeast to the Great Lakes and Upper MS Valley. Ahead of the axis of the upper trough, a sfc inverted trough should extend from the Gulf coast into the middle TN/Cumberland Plateau vicinity and into parts of central to eastern KY initially as well. Some return moisture is also progged to work north and northwest into the Commonwealth at that point, with 00Z LREF mean PW in the 1.1 to 1.5 inch range at that time. From Sunday to Monday night, the region should remain east of upper level troughing that becomes established a bit further west through the MS Valley in between upper level ridging that builds west from the Atlantic into the Southeast and eastern Gulf and upper level ridging remaining centered over the southwest Conus/northwest Mexico area that builds into sections of the Plains. During that time, PW per the 00Z LREF mean is in the 1.2 to 1.5 inch range so enough moisture will be present for some convection to begin next week. Guidance generally points toward greater coverage on Sunday than Monday with a diurnal peak anticipated each day. Temperatures will remain about 5 degrees below normal for Monday, before moderating at bit though still a couple of degrees below normal for Monday. With the trough in place and clouds at times even at night, as the previous forecaster noted, no significant ridge/valley temperature differences are anticipated at night. Tuesday to Wednesday night, the axis of upper troughing between ridging centered in the Atlantic and strengthening ridging in the western Conus to Plains and centered in NM shifts to the Central Great Lakes to OH and TN Valley to the Southeast. Sfc high pressure is expected to remain centered to the northeast of eastern KY at midweek while a warm front gradually shifts to near the MS Valley to the Southeast extending from low pressure moving across western to Central Canada in advance of an upper trough that works into western Canada to the Pacific Northwest. Convection with a diurnal peak should be a feature each day with temperatures remaining a few degrees below normal. Thursday and Friday, troughing is progged to remain from the central to eastern Great Lakes to the OH valley and Southern Appalachians to Southeast with the axis of the upper troughing moving little. A sfc high pressure ridge should remain centered to the northeast of the region while a frontal zone remains from the southeast to the mid MS Valley and sags south through northern sections of the Plains. As at the start of the week, a diurnal peak in convection is anticipated each day. Current guidance suggest temperatures moderating back to near normal during this timeframe as well. && .AVIATION...(For the 12Z TAFS through 12Z Sunday morning) ISSUED AT 700 AM EDT SAT AUG 2 2025 Low clouds helped to erase much of the fog early this morning with IFR to MVFR CIGs south of KSYM. All terminals will return to VFR by mid-morning but increasing PoP chances will exist and a PROB30 for KSJS and KJKL may be needed after 18Z. Again late tonight areas of valley fog may affect some of the TAF sites. Winds will be light and variable through midday before picking up from the northeast at 5 to 10 kts. && .JKL WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... None. && $$ UPDATE...GREIF SHORT TERM...GREIF LONG TERM...JP/GREIF AVIATION...GREIF