568 FXUS63 KLSX 130346 AFDLSXArea Forecast Discussion...Updated Aviation National Weather Service Saint Louis MO 1046 PM CDT Fri Sep 12 2025
.KEY MESSAGES...
-Above normal temperatures will continue through at least Wednesday.
-Daily chances for spotty afternoon showers and thunderstorms starts Saturday and extends through at least Wednesday.
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.SHORT TERM... (Through Late Saturday Night) Issued at 211 PM CDT Fri Sep 12 2025
As of 2PM temperatures have warmed into the upper 80s to low 90s areawide under the influence of a building mid-level ridge, low- level warm air advection, and abundant sunshine. A shortwave disturbance is expected to move along the northern periphery of the ridge this evening, and while the weak forcing and dry low level air will largely mitigate any rainfall, I cannot rule out a few sprinkles across northeast Missouri and west-central Illinois.
By Saturday the mid-level ridge will be squarely over the mid- Mississippi Valley, with 850 mb temperatures pushing above the 90th climatological percentile for this time of year. Combined with plenty of sunshine, this will result in one of the hottest days of the period with highs pushing the mid to upper 90s. Instability will be able to form underneath the ridge, with the HREF is depicting up to 1000-1500 J/kg of MUCAPE during the afternoon. Within the low-level warm air advection regime, convective inhibition will be at a minimum, particularly during the afternoon. Combined with steep low-level lapse rates, widely isolated showers and thunderstorms are possible during the afternoon Saturday, despite the building mid-level ridge.
Delia
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.LONG TERM... (Sunday through Next Friday) Issued at 211 PM CDT Fri Sep 12 2025
Sunday through Wednesday of next week will feel like nearly a carbon copy of Saturday as the mid-level ridge persists across the central CONUS as a part of an Omega Block. Sunday`s temperatures will peak once again in the mid to upper 90s areawide, a little warmer than 24 hours ago as the signal for high clouds has dissipated. The mid- level ridge will shift eastward over the week, and high temperatures will cool a few degrees but remain in the 90s through at least Wednesday. Each day isolated afternoon showers and perhaps a thunderstorm will develop across the region. While the location of where this rain forms is uncertain, confidence is high that amounts will not be enough to make a significant impact in the hot and dry conditions gripping the region.
As the mid-level ridge tips to the northeast by mid-week, a mid- level trough will slide into the Upper Plains, helping to break the Omega Block. The evolution of this feature and its impacts remain uncertain, though all global ensemble members depict the trough. The interquartile spread for high temperatures depicts a clear cooling trend for the end of next week and next weekend, the details of which are wrapped up in the uncertainty of the trough.
Delia
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.AVIATION... (For the 06z TAFs through 06z Saturday Night) Issued at 1042 PM CDT Fri Sep 12 2025
Mainly dry and VFR conditions are expected through the period. The only exception will be a low (
NWS LSX Office Area Forecast Discussion