117
FXUS66 KOTX 060747
AFDOTX

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Spokane WA
1247 AM PDT Mon Apr 6 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Warmer and dry early this week.

- Gusty winds and dry conditions Tuesday. Elevated grass fire
  potential in the late morning and afternoon Tuesday.

&&

.SYNOPSIS...
Warm and dry conditions will continue through today. Temperatures
will warm above normal with highs in the upper 60s to the low
70s. Temperatures cool back to near normal Tuesday with a dry
cold front passage, along with breezy conditions. The Inland
Northwest looks to be unseasonably dry through the next week.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
Today and tonight: A ridge of high pressure over the region
will begin to flatten as low pressure in the Gulf of AK drops
southeast. The shield of higher clouds will begin to thin
through some this morning to early afternoon, but middle clouds
are expected to increase in the afternoon. The area is expected
to remain precipitation-free until tonight, when some rain
chances push up to the Cascade crest and develop over far
northeast WA into far northern ID tonight. Precipitation
amounts, if any look light. Winds will be relatively light this
morning, then speeds start to increase out of the southwest this
afternoon into tonight. Speeds of 10-15 mph with gusts 20-30 mph
possible. The highest are expected over the Waterville Plateau
through Upper Columbia Basin. Today is expected to be the
mildest day of the next week, with highs in the upper 60s to
70s, with a few spots in the deeper Columbia Basin possibly
reaching the lower 80s. Lows tonight will largely in the 40s.

Tuesday: A cooler, windier day is in the forecast. A cold front
pushes across the area in the early morning hours, advancing
toward Montana toward midday. Some moisture if found just ahead
of the front with PWATs around 150-170% of normal or around 0.50
inch. Precipitation chances will continue over north Idaho into
the central Panhandle, largely along the ID/MT border. This
will start off largely as a chance for rain then turn to
rain/snow or high mountain snow risk. However precipitation
amounts look light and any snow is not expected to have any real
impacts, if any accumulates.

The focus really goes to the winds. Drier air comes in rapidly
behind the front later Tuesday morning to afternoon, with PWATs
dropping to 45-65% of normal or 0.15 to 0.25 inches. With the
sharp upper trough diving in, the jet axis sliding south and a
15 mb gradient between the Cascades and Montana border, this
will lead to breezy to windy conditions. Speeds of 15-25 mph
with gusts of 30-40 mph are forecast. Higher gusts of 40-50 mph
are possible around the Waterville Plateau, northern Columbia
Basin and Blue Mountain into the southern Palouse. Area near the
Blue Mountain and just downwind could see gusts near 60 mph.
These latter areas will be monitored for any need for
highlights. Some impacts could be tree damage, difficulty for
high-profile vehicles, and unsecured objects airborne. Also,
while we are not in fire season, as it is early April, the
combination of winds and low RH values could combine to create
hazardous conditions for any controlled burn operations. Lastly,
some patchy blowing dust cannot be entirely ruled out over the
Columbia Basin, but confidence is lower at this time. Speeds
decline Tuesday night into Wednesday morning.

Temperatures will be notably 10-15 degrees cooler on Tuesday
compared to Monday, with highs in the 50s to mid-60s. Lows
Tuesday night into Wednesday AM are forecast to be in the upper
20s to mid-30s.

Wednesday to Sunday: The Inland NW will be a more progressive
pattern, with dry weather midweek changing to some rain and
mountain rain/snow chances this weekend. The region remains in a
northwest flow Wednesday, with a secondary shortwave dropping
by. It is not expected to do much except perhaps increase winds
a bit down the Okanogan Valley during the first half of the day.
The pattern remains the same Thursday then gradually shifts to
westerly with a weak ridge building in ahead of the weekend
system. Conditions remain dry with a gradual increase in clouds
toward the end of the week. Then by the weekend the next low
moves in with some increased moisture. This will increase clouds
and the aforementioned precipitation chances. The higher risk
remains around the mountain zones Saturday, but does expand out
across the Columbia Basin through later Saturday into Sunday The
best chance for wetting rain will be around the mountain zones,
while the basin and Spokane Area and Palouse and L-C Valley
will largely see rain less than a tenth of an inch. Mountain
snow look light at generally less than an inch, if that. Breezy
winds are forecast for Saturday and Sunday afternoon, with gusts
of 15-25 mph; the highest are forecast for the Waterville
Plateau to Upper Columbia Basin and Blue Mountains. Temperatures
will be trend warmer through the end of the work week, with
highs in the 50s to mid-60s Wednesday rising toward the 60s to
mid-70s Friday. Temperatures cool back toward the 50s and
mid-60s heading into Sunday. Lows will be in the 30s to lower
40s. /Solveig

&&

.AVIATION...
06Z TAFS: VFR conditions expected through the forecast period,
with variable middle to high clouds. Some lower clouds, though
still above 5000 feet, develop through Monday afternoon. Winds
light and variable much of the period, increasing some later in
the afternoon into evening especially near the Cascades. Beyond
this TAF period, beyond 06Z Tuesday, some LLWS is possible near
EAT/GEG.

FORECAST CONFIDENCE AND/OR ALTERNATE SCENARIOS:
High confidence in VFR conditions.

-----------------------

Confidence descriptors:
Low - Less than a 30 percent chance
Moderate - 30 to 70 percent chance
High - Greater than a 70 percent chance

For additional probabilistic information for NWS Spokane
airports,please refer to the Aviation Dashboard on our
webpage: https:/www.weather.gov/otx/avndashboard

&&

.Preliminary Point Temps/PoPs...
Spokane        71  44  55  32  58  34 /   0  10   0   0   0   0
Coeur d`Alene  69  44  55  32  56  33 /   0  10   0   0   0   0
Pullman        68  46  55  32  56  35 /   0   0   0   0   0   0
Lewiston       72  49  63  36  62  37 /   0   0   0   0   0   0
Colville       74  41  57  30  61  32 /   0  10  10   0   0   0
Sandpoint      67  44  52  32  55  32 /   0  10  20   0   0   0
Kellogg        68  45  52  33  54  35 /   0  10  20   0   0   0
Moses Lake     78  44  62  33  64  36 /   0   0   0   0   0   0
Wenatchee      77  42  58  36  62  40 /   0   0   0   0   0   0
Omak           77  41  60  35  62  37 /   0   0   0   0   0   0

&&

.OTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...None.
ID...None.

&&

$$