160  
FXUS63 KFSD 240919  
AFDFSD  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD  
419 AM CDT FRI JUL 24 2026  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- ONE MORE DAY OF SEASONABLE LATE-JULY TEMPERATURES TODAY.  
 
- SUMMER HEAT RETURNS THIS WEEKEND WITH MULTIPLE DAYS OF HIGHS  
IN THE 90S TO AROUND 100, WARMEST TOWARD CENTRAL SD. HEAT  
RELATED HEADLINES MAY BE NEEDED.  
 
- WHILE DETAILS ARE UNCERTAIN, IF STORMS DEVELOP SUNDAY EVENING  
INTO SUNDAY NIGHT, SOME MAY BE STRONG TO SEVERE WITH DAMAGING  
WINDS, ISOLATED LARGE HAIL AND HEAVY RAIN POSSIBLE.  
 

 
   
UPDATE
 
 
ISSUED AT 415 AM CDT FRI JUL 24 2026  
 
IF YOU ARE NOT A FAN OF HEAT/HUMIDITY, BE SURE TO ENJOY TODAY  
BEFORE THE HEAT RETURNS THIS WEEKEND. CONFIDENCE IS FAIRLY HIGH  
THAT HIGHS IN THE 90S TO AROUND 100 WILL RETURN FOR SATURDAY AND  
SUNDAY, WITH WARMEST READINGS MOST LIKELY TOWARD CENTRAL SOUTH  
DAKOTA. THE QUESTIONS COME IN JUST HOW HIGH TEMPERATURES AND/OR  
DEW POINTS WILL GET. FOR THAT REASON WE HAVE OPTED TO HOLD OFF  
ON ANY HEAT HEADLINES FOR NOW AND WILL GIVE THE DAY SHIFT ANOTHER  
LOOK AT LOW LEVEL THERMAL PROFILES AND COVERAGE OF UPPER LEVEL  
SMOKE WHICH COULD HOLD TEMPERATURES DOWN A BIT FROM MODEL OUTPUT  
IF IT IS THICK ENOUGH.  
 
WITH THE BUILDING HEAT, STORM CHANCES ARE GENERALLY ON THE LOW  
SIDE THROUGH THE WEEKEND. HOWEVER, WILL HAVE TO WATCH A COUPLE  
OF PERIODS FOR A POSSIBLE INCREASE IN RAIN CHANCES. FIRST WILL  
BE TOWARD CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA LATE SATURDAY. FORCING IS WEAK,  
AS IS DEEP LAYER SHEAR, BUT SEVERAL CAMS ARE HINTING AT SPOTTY  
STORMS DEVELOPING AS THIS AREA HEATS OUT, WHICH COULD POTENTIAL  
DRIFT INTO OUR WESTERN COUNTIES. THERE IS CURRENTLY A LEVEL 1 OF  
5 (MARGINAL) RISK FOR SEVERE STORMS JUST WEST OF OUR CWA IN THE  
DAY 2 OUTLOOK, BUT IF THESE STORMS ARE ABLE TO GROW UPSCALE AS  
SEEN IN SOME OF THE HIGH-RES OUTPUT, THIS RISK AREA MAY NEED TO  
BE EXPANDED FOR AN ISOLATED DAMAGING WIND THREAT. CONFIDENCE IN  
THIS POTENTIAL IS LOW AT THIS TIME.  
 
A SECOND PERIOD OF CONCERN WOULD COME SUNDAY EVENING INTO THE  
OVERNIGHT HOURS, AS DETAILED IN THE DAY 3 SPC OUTLOOK WHICH  
BRING A MARGINAL TO SLIGHT (LEVEL 1 AND 2 OUT OF 5) RISK ACROSS  
THE EASTERN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA. ONCE AGAIN, DETAILS ARE  
LOW CONFIDENCE AS THE RISK IS CONDITIONAL ON STORMS DEVELOPING  
AS A WAVE AND ASSOCIATED BOUNDARY MOVE THROUGH THE DAKOTAS AND  
MINNESOTA. DAMAGING WINDS WOULD AGAIN BE THE PRIMARY THREAT, BUT  
LARGE HAIL AND HEAVY RAIN ARE ALSO POSSIBLE.  
 

 
   
DISCUSSION
 
 
ISSUED AT 148 PM CDT THU JUL 23 2026  
 
AN UPPER LEVEL WAVE AND SATURATION ALOFT WILL MOVE THROUGH THE AREA  
LATER THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH TONIGHT. WHILE SOME VERY WEAK  
INSTABILITY IS EXPECTED ALOFT, THUNDER IS VERY UNLIKELY. SATURATION  
ALOFT IS MOST PROMINENT BETWEEN I-90 AND THE MISSOURI RIVER AND WITH  
THE DRY LAYER IN THE LOW LEVELS NOT EXCESSIVELY DRY, SOME QUARTER TO  
POSSIBLY HALF INCH RAINFALL AMOUNTS ARE POSSIBLE OVER ABOUT A 6 HOUR  
PERIOD.  
 
FRIDAY SHOULD GENERALLY BE DRY AND MILD, MAYBE A FEW SHOWERS IN  
NORTHWEST IA DURING THE MORNING. HIGHS REMAIN BELOW NORMAL, BUT WILL  
BE A BIT HIGHER WITH MOST LOCATIONS CLIMBING INTO THE 80S, COOLEST  
IN NORTHWEST IA.  
 
HOT CONDITIONS RETURN FOR THE WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. THE  
LATEST BIAS CORRECTED DATA IS RUNNING ABOUT 5 DEGREES COOLER  
THAN THE MODEL OUTPUT FOR SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY. WILL HAVE TO  
KEEP AN EYE ON TRENDS AS THE HEAT APPROACHES AS LAST WEEKS WARM  
UP THE NBM OVERDID THE HEAT ALMOST EVERY DAY. THIS TIME AROUND  
THERE WILL BE A BETTER POTENTIAL FOR SOUTHWEST WINDS AT THE  
SURFACE WHICH GENERALLY AIDS IN HEATING OUT, SO MAYBE THE 3-6  
DEGREE WARM BIAS THAT WAS SEEN WITH THE PAST WARM UP WILL BE A  
LITTLE LESS. LONG STORY SHORT, THE BIAS CORRECTED OUTPUT FALLS  
JUST SHORT OF A HEAT ADVISORY BOTH SATURDAY AND SUNDAY WHILE THE  
NBM IS BASICALLY IN HEAT ADVISORY BOTH DAYS.  
 
CONVECTIVE CHANCES ARE PRETTY SMALL THROUGH MONDAY. A SLIGHTLY  
STRONGER WAVE WILL DROP SOUTH ON SUNDAY AND BRING A SMALL THREAT FOR  
SEVERE STORMS. THE BETTER CHANCE SHOULD BE NORTH AND EAST OF THE  
AREA. THIS WILL BE THE MAIN TIME FRAME TO TRACK OVER THE  
UPCOMING DAYS.  
 
TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY SHOULD SEE UPPER LEVEL RIDGING JUST WEST OF  
THE AREA WITH STRONGER NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT JUST NORTHEAST OF THE  
AREA. THIS LEAVES THE AREA IN POSITION FOR ABOVE NORMAL  
TEMPERATURES, BUT POSSIBLY NOT ON THE EXCESSIVE SIDE AS WEAK WAVES  
WILL AT TIMES ALLOW SLIGHTLY COOLER AIR TO MOVE IN. WITH THESE WEAK  
WAVES WILL COME PERIODIC CHANCE FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS BUT  
FOR NOW CONFIDENCE IN THIS ACTIVITY IS LOW.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z SATURDAY/
 
 
ISSUED AT 1208 AM CDT FRI JUL 24 2026  
 
SCATTERED LIGHT TO MODERATE RAIN SHOWERS CONTINUE TO MOVE  
SOUTHEAST THROUGH THE OVERNIGHT. SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT  
ANTICIPATED BUT A FEW STRIKES OF LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE, AS WELL  
AS BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS. THE MAJORITY OF THE ACTIVITY WILL BE  
SOUTH OF I-90. A FEW LINGERING SHOWERS OVER NORTHWEST IOWA ARE  
POSSIBLE INTO MID-FRIDAY MORNING.  
 
THE STRATUS DECK IS EXPECTED TO GRADUALLY LOWER OVER THE NEXT FEW  
HOURS RESULTING IN WIDESPREAD MVFR WITH OCCASIONAL IFR  
POSSIBLE. SOME PATCHY FOG IS ALSO POSSIBLE ALONG WATER WAYS AND  
LOW AREAS. STRATUS SLOWLY BEGINS TO RISE AS CLOUDS ERODE THROUGH  
THE MORNING AND AFTERNOON.  
 
WINDS WILL BE SOUTHERLY AND INCREASE THROUGH THE MORNING. GUSTS OF  
15-25 KTS ARE EXPECTED WITH THE HIGHEST GUSTS ALONG THE BUFFALO  
RIDGE AREA IN SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA. WINDS DECREASE IN THE EVENING  
THROUGH THE END OF THE PERIOD.  
 

 
   
FSD WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
SD...NONE.  
MN...NONE.  
IA...NONE.  
NE...NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
UPDATE...JH  
DISCUSSION...08  
AVIATION...AJP  
 
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