Weather Outlook for the U.S. for Today Through at Least 22 Days and a Six-Day Forecast for the World: posted October 24, 2024
This article focuses on what we are paying attention to in the next 48 to 72 hours. The article also includes weather maps for longer-term U.S. outlooks (up to four weeks) and a six-day World weather outlook which can be very useful for travelers.
First the NWS Short Range Forecast. The afternoon NWS text update can be found here after about 4 p.m. New York time but it is unlikely to have changed very much from the morning update. The images in this article automatically update.
Short Range Forecast Discussion
NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD
Thu Oct 24 2024
Valid 12Z Thu Oct 24 2024 – 12Z Sat Oct 26 2024…Pleasant weather continues across most of the country through the end
of the week……Well above-average temperatures continue over the Central and Southern
U.S…A quiet and relatively uneventful fall weather pattern will continue to be
in place across the continental U.S. through the end of the week, with
high pressure keeping mainly sunny skies in place across the Central and
Eastern U.S. and the warm conditions continuing across the Plains and
southern tier states. A cold front approaching the East Coast will herald
the arrival of more autumnal temperatures for Thursday with highs falling
10 to 20 degrees for many areas from the Mid-Atlantic to the Northeast
compared to Wednesday. Even warmer conditions are likely for the central
and southern Plains to close out the work week, with highs running up to
20 degrees above normal for late October, with the potential for
additional record highs.In terms of precipitation prospects, scattered showers and thunderstorms
are likely for the Midwest states ahead of the next cold front dropping
south across the Northern Plains on Thursday and into Thursday night. A
more concentrated corridor of heavier rainfall is expected from eastern
Iowa to northern Illinois on Thursday, with the potential for a few strong
thunderstorms in the warm sector of the surface low. There may also be a
few showers in easterly flow across the Florida Peninsula. Out West, some
showers and high elevation snow are expected from eastern Idaho to Wyoming
and southern Montana with a shortwave upper trough moving through the
region. Looking ahead to Friday, onshore flow ahead of a Pacific cold
front will lead to light to moderate rain developing across western Oregon
and Washington, but not considered an atmospheric river event.The combination of very warm conditions, dry grounds, and increased winds
across the Central Plains will raise the potential for wildfires, based on
the SPC fire weather outlook on Thursday. There may also be some fire
weather concerns across portions of the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast on
Thursday in the wake of a dry cold front, with dry conditions and gusty
winds developing.