497
FXUS64 KEWX 192307
AFDEWX

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio TX
607 PM CDT Thu Mar 19 2026

...New AVIATION...

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Record highs possible Friday through Sunday with temperatures
  reaming well above average through next week.

- Elevated fire weather conditions possible most days due to low
  minimum humidities across portions of South Central Texas.

&&

.SHORT TERM...
(Tonight through Friday night)
Issued at 1214 PM CDT Thu Mar 19 2026

Clear skies and light winds will help most areas reach the low to
mid 80s by late this afternoon. Expect lows tonight to remain in
the 50s as clouds increase mainly for areas along and east of the
I-35 Corridor in the early morning hours. We really ramp up in
high temperatures with record breaking heat for Friday with many
seeing highs in the low to possibly mid 90s. Several records may
be broken (see the Climate Section below) as the anomalously
strong ridge out over the desert southwest starts to inch closer
to our area. Mid level winds will remain northerly while we
continue to see southerly winds at the lower levels thus helping
to keep our area in a drier pattern. Friday night`s lows will
likely remain in the mid to perhaps upper 50s as winds began to
turn southwesterly. Additionally, as this dry air remains we will
continue to see local fire weather issues continue in the short
term and into the long term. See FIRE WEATHER section below for
details.

&&

.LONG TERM...
(Saturday through next Thursday)
Issued at 1214 PM CDT Thu Mar 19 2026

Our warming trend continues into the weekend as the strong
thermal ridge continues to slowly push eastward and center itself
over West TX. Strong surface heating will allow temps to ramp up
into the low to mid 90s over the weekend. In fact, we could see
record highs especially on Saturday as this unseasonably warm
airmass continues. See the CLIMATE section below for details. The
ridge begins to deamplify as moist southerly low level flow
increases resulting in daytime temperatures backing off from
record levels. That`s not to say that temperatures won`t be hot
for this time of year, they just wont be record breaking hot.

There remains little chance of a cooldown beyond this weekend as
guidance shows a weak cold front trying to push through the area
but most models continue to keep this front well to our north. As
a result temperatures are likely to rise back into the 90s for
the rest of the upcoming week. Additionally, we remain dry as the
highly anomalous ridge continues to hold some influence over our
area with no chance of rain in sight throughout the next 7 days.

&&

.AVIATION...
(00Z TAFS)
Issued at 606 PM CDT Thu Mar 19 2026

A batch of low clouds and patchy fog may develop early Friday
morning over the Coastal Plains and could move near the I-35
corridor close to sunrise. Have kept the TEMPO groups for FEW/SCT
low ceilings at I-35 terminals due to this possibility. Otherwise,
VFR conditions are expected with clear skies tonight and again
Friday afternoon. Light to moderate southerly winds continue of
around 10 kt or less.

&&

.FIRE WEATHER...
Issued at 1214 PM CDT Thu Mar 19 2026

Mixing with warm/dry mid level air maintains minimum humidities
in the teens and 20s through the forecast with teens across many
areas on Friday and continuing through Sunday and along the Rio
Grande next week. On most days, winds will be light at 10 mph or
less with only elevated fire weather conditions possible. Wind
speeds increase to 10 to 15 mph with gusts to 20 to 25 mph across
many areas on Sunday and with the lowest minimum humidities on
that day, near critical fire weather conditions are possible.
Overnight recovery of humidities will mainly be good through the
period, especially from portions of the the Hill Country across
the I-35 corridor to the Coastal Plains with poor to moderate
across the Edwards Plateau and Rio Grande Plains, at times. If
trends continue a Red Flag Warning may be needed for the Rio
Grande Plains.

&&

.CLIMATE...
Issued at 1231 PM CDT Wed Mar 18 2026

Record |  Friday   |  Saturday      |  Sunday   |

          (03/20)     (03/21)          (03/22)

AUS    | 92 (1976) | 90 (1952)      | 98 (1971) |
ATT   | 91 (1976) | 91 (1952/1917) | 96 (1971) |
SAT    | 93 (1976) | 94 (1904)      | 96 (1971) |
DRT   | 96 (1932) | 93 (1916/1907) | 96 (1995) |

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
Austin Camp Mabry              57  92  60  95 /   0   0   0   0
Austin Bergstrom Intl Airport  54  91  58  94 /   0   0   0   0
New Braunfels Muni Airport     52  89  56  93 /   0   0   0   0
Burnet Muni Airport            55  91  59  95 /   0   0   0   0
Del Rio Intl Airport           56  95  59  98 /   0   0   0   0
Georgetown Muni Airport        56  93  59  96 /   0   0   0   0
Hondo Muni Airport             50  91  54  94 /   0   0   0   0
San Marcos Muni Airport        52  90  57  93 /   0   0   0   0
La Grange - Fayette Regional   54  88  59  92 /   0   0   0   0
San Antonio Intl Airport       55  90  58  93 /   0   0   0   0
Stinson Muni Airport           54  91  57  94 /   0   0   0   0

&&

.EWX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
None.
&&

$$

SHORT TERM...CJM
LONG TERM....CJM
AVIATION...27