Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Las Vegas, NV
Issued by NWS Las Vegas, NV
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748 FXUS65 KVEF 051144 AFDVEF Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 445 AM PDT Sat Sep 5 2026 .KEY MESSAGES... * Breezy conditions persist today with a slight (5 to 15 percent) chance of isolated showers and thunderstorms in our southern zones. * Shower and thunderstorm chances increase and spread across the Mojave Desert on Sunday as moisture surges northward. * Drier conditions expected for Labor Day, though monsoonal moisture and warmer temperatures return midweek. && .DISCUSSION...Today through Friday. Generally expecting a quiet and dry day across the region today. Will need to watch if showers and thunderstorms are able to develop along a moisture boundary as it surges northward this afternoon, particularly in southern Mohave County and the Colorado River Valley south of Lake Mohave. Due to the dry low-levels, these showers and thunderstorms may simply amount to virga with gusty winds from their direction. Breezy south to southwest winds are expected again this afternoon, with magnitudes slightly lower than yesterday`s winds with gust speeds between 20 and 30 MPH in many locations. The main concern in the forecast is Sunday as moisture is advected up from the tropics, resulting in a plume of precipitation across the region. PWATs climb over 1.00 inches by Sunday. Models are all in decent agreement that this stripe of precipitation will develop somewhere across the region, but exactly where is still in question. The best guess is a band of stratiform rain setting up through the western Mojave Desert through Clark County into southwestern Utah on Sunday as this is where the signal for measurable rainfall is highest. Areas south and north of this are where the uncertainty exists, especially Death Valley, Pahrump, and Caliente to the north, then Kingman and Bullhead City to the south. The other unknown for this event is how much convection will be able to develop alongside or within the rain band, but current instability fields are not strongly supportive of thunderstorm development. The highest chance for rainfall impacts will be the western Mojave Desert through the Spring Mountains where there is about a 50% chance for over 0.50 inches of total rainfall Sunday and Sunday night (with a bulk of the rainfall occurring before Sunday evening). Las Vegas may struggle to see much rainfall due to rainshadowing from the nearby terrain, but rain should fall at some point on Sunday in the valley. Roadway ponding, minor flooding, and responses in typical flashy areas will be possible where the heaviest rainfall does fall. Things shut down Sunday night as the trough swings inland. On Monday, PWATs dry out quickly as westerly anti-cyclonic flows sets up aloft. After a cool down on Sunday with the rain and falling heights, it will start warming back up on Monday as the trough lifts out. After a down day on Monday, will need to monitor how moisture moves back in from both the tropics in the Pacific as well as monsoonal moisture as the high repositions itself somewhere over the Southwest US. Temperatures will depend on how much moisture returns to the region, but should remain at least near normal for this time of the year. && .AVIATION...For Harry Reid...For the 12Z Forecast Package...South- southwest winds with gusts between 20 and 25 kts expected this afternoon. Expect gradually increasing cloud cover after sunset today. Periods of showers and a slight chance of thunderstorms possible after 10Z Sunday with CIGs dropping to 8 to 10 kft. Light showers expected after 15Z Sunday. Temperatures will remain below 100F through at least Tuesday. For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast California...For the 12Z Forecast Package...Gusty south- southwesterly winds expected this afternoon with gust speeds between 20 and 30 kts. The exception will be KDAG gusting from the west. Expect gradually increasing cloud cover this afternoon through this evening. Colorado River Valley TAF sites, KDAG, and Las Vegas Valley TAF sites have a chance of shower and thunderstorm activity over the terminal starting between 08 and 10Z. With precipitation, expect CIGs dropping to 8 to 10 kft. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating procedures. && $$ DISCUSSION...Nickerson AVIATION...Soulat For more forecast information...see us on our webpage: https://weather.gov/lasvegas or follow us on Facebook and Twitter