932  
FXUS63 KABR 041652 AAB  
AFDABR  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ABERDEEN SD  
1052 AM CST SUN JAN 4 2026  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- FOG CONTINUES OVER THE REGION TODAY, ESPECIALLY OVER CENTRAL SD  
WHERE VISIBILITY MAY BE REDUCED TO AROUND ONE-QUARTER MILE OR  
LESS DURING THE MORNING HOURS.  
 
- PATCHES OF FREEZING DRIZZLE OR LIGHT FREEZING RAIN AND SLEET MAY  
AFFECT PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST SD AND WEST  
CENTRAL MN TODAY. THIS COULD LEAD TO A FEW SLICK SPOTS ON  
ROADWAYS.  
 
- TEMPERATURES TODAY INTO NEXT WEEK WILL BE 10 TO 20 DEGREES ABOVE  
NORMAL.  
 

 
   
UPDATE
 
 
ISSUED AT 1044 AM CST SUN JAN 4 2026  
 
SURFACE OBS, LAW ENFORCEMENT FEEDBACK, WEBCAMS, ROAD REPORTS ON  
SD511.ORG AND COMMENTS IN FACEBOOK, PLUS COLLABORATION WITH  
NEIGHBORING OFFICES, HAS PROMPTED THE ISSUANCE OF A WINTER WEATHER  
ADVISORY ACROSS THE NORTHERN TIER COUNTIES OF THE CWA INTO THIS  
AFTERNOON. PLUS, STARTING TO SEE THE "DRIZZLE BLOOM" P-TYPE  
DEVELOPING IN THE "NORTHWEST QUADRANT" OF ABR'S WSR-88D. SOUNDINGS  
DEPICT A LOW STRATUS LAYER THAT IS CLOSE, A LITTLE LESS THAN 1KM  
DEEP IN SOME SPOTS, A LITTLE MORE THAN 1KM IN OTHERS. THERE'S AN  
UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVE MOVING OVERHEAD TODAY. THE SYNOPTIC-SCALE  
UVV'S WORKING THROUGH WITH THIS SYSTEM COULD BE ENOUGH TO TIP THE  
SCALES IN THE DIRECTION OF FREEZING DRIZZLE POTENTIAL. VERY LITTLE  
IN THE WAY OF MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION. JUST ENOUGH TO MAKE ROADS,  
SIDEWALKS, BRIDGES SLIPPERY. PLUS, EXTENDED THE DENSE FOG ADVISORY  
OVER THE CENTRAL/NORTH CENTRAL FORECAST ZONES TO 21Z THIS  
AFTERNOON, AFTER CANCELLING BUFFALO, LYMAN, JONES, HUGHES AND  
STANLEY COUNTIES. THOSE ARE THE MAIN CHANGES TO THE TODAY PERIOD  
FORECAST. UPDATES ARE OUT.  
 
UPDATE ISSUED AT 533 AM CST SUN JAN 4 2026  
 
AVIATION DISCUSSION UPDATED BELOW FOR THE 12Z TAFS.  
 

 
   
SHORT TERM /TODAY THROUGH MONDAY AFTERNOON/
 
 
ISSUED AT 414 AM CST SUN JAN 4 2026  
 
STRATUS CONTINUES TO COVER THE ENTIRE CWA, WITH FOG OVER CENTRAL SD.  
AREAS OF FOG ACROSS PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST SD AS WELL. ALTHOUGH  
ACROSS CENTRAL SD, MANY WEB CAMS REVEAL SOMEWHAT DENSE FOG. HAVE  
THEREFORE ISSUED A DENSE FOG ADVISORY FOR AREAS WEST OF THE JAMES  
VALLEY AND WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR FOR AREAL COVERAGE CHANGES  
THROUGHOUT THE MORNING. SOME CAMS ACROSS CENTRAL SD SHOWING QUITE A  
BIT OF FROST ACCRETION ON SURFACES. CAMS OVER NORTHEAST SD REVEAL  
POCKETS OF FLURRIES OR PERHAPS EVEN FREEZING DRIZZLE. WILL CONTINUE  
TO MONITOR THIS FOR POTENTIAL ADDITION INTO THE GRIDS/FORECAST.  
 
FOR LATER TODAY, MODELS INDICATE ONLY SLOW EROSION OF STRATUS INTO  
CENTRAL SD AND PERHAPS ACROSS THE FRINGES OF THE CWA BORDERING FSD.  
CONSTRUCTED SKY GRIDS TO REFLECT CLOUDY/MOSTLY CLOUDY WORDING FOR  
MUCH OF THE AREA EAST OF THE MISSOURI RIVER, BUT ESPECIALLY FOR THE  
JAMES VALLEY AND POINTS EAST. AREAS OF FOG MAY ALSO LINGER EVEN INTO  
THE DAYTIME HOURS FOR EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE CWA. AS LOW PRESSURE  
MOVES EAST TODAY, THERE MAY BE GENERATION OF LIGHT FREEZING  
DRIZZLE/DRIZZLE, OR EVEN PATCHES OF LIGHT FREEZING RAIN OR SLEET  
OVER FAR NORTHEAST SD INTO WEST CENTRAL MN. QUITE A LARGE RANGE OF  
FORECAST HIGHS TODAY FROM NORTH (30S) TO SOUTH (50S) AS THE LOW  
PRESSURE BRINGS IN SOME MILD AIR TO SOUTHERN SD. OF COURSE, CLOUD  
COVER WILL HAVE A HUGE IMPACT ON HIGHS, BUT WHERE CONDITIONS CLEAR  
OUT OVER THE SOUTHWEST CWA, COULD SEE HIGHS IN THE 50S ALONG THE I-  
90 CORRIDOR.  
 
OVERNIGHT, MODELS INDICATE FOG POTENTIAL YET AGAIN SO HAVE INSERTED  
THIS INTO THE GRIDS/FORECAST. AS OF NOW, BEST POTENTIAL LOOKS TO BE  
OVER THE EASTERN CWA. LOOKING AHEAD TO MONDAY, CONDITIONS LOOK DRY  
WITH RATHER MILD TEMPERATURES. 30S AND 40S FOR MANY AREAS, BUT MAY  
BE DEALING WITH CLOUD COVER ONCE AGAIN.  
 

 
   
LONG TERM /MONDAY EVENING THROUGH SATURDAY/
 
 
ISSUED AT 414 AM CST SUN JAN 4 2026  
 
ZONAL FLOW WITH A BROAD WEAK TROUGH ACROSS THE CENTRAL CONUS SLATED  
FOR LATE MONDAY INTO TUESDAY, AND PRESENTS WITH ADDITIONAL LOW  
CHANCES FOR MOISTURE. THERE IS ACTUALLY A PAIR OF WEAK SHORTWAVES TO  
THIS, AND WHILE EACH COMES WITH MID LEVEL MOISTURE AND ASCENT, WE  
ARE AGAIN FACED WITH A PERIOD WHERE SATURATION DOWN TO THE SURFACE  
HAS TO OVERCOME A DEEP DRY LAYER, WITH NAM BUFKIT PROFILES  
INDICATING THE LOSS OF LIFT OCCURS BEFORE SATURATION. THUS, WE'D BE  
LEFT WITH MOSTLY SPRINKLES. THE WARM LAYER DEWPOINT DEPRESSION IS  
OVER 10C FOR THE INITIAL WAVE LATE MONDAY, WITH COOLER TEMPERATURES  
ALOFT BUT STILL AROUND A 6C DEWPOINT DEPRESSION FOR THE SECOND WAVE.  
 
THE NEXT WAVE THAT FOLLOWS THROUGH THIS WEAK TROUGH PATTERN, WITH  
SPLIT FLOW ALOFT, MOVES OVERHEAD LATE WEDNESDAY. AGAIN, NOT MUCH  
FOR MOISTURE WITH THIS SYSTEM, WITH ONLY A HANDFUL OF ENSEMBLES  
SUPPORTING MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION.  
 
FOCUS SHIFTS TO LATE IN THE WORK WEEK, AS THE UPPER TROUGH OVERHEAD  
DEEPENS AND SHIFTS EAST. STILL A LOT OF DISTANCE IN PLACEMENT  
BETWEEN THE EC/GFS/CANADIAN OF THIS TROUGH, AND AS SUCH THE  
ASSOCIATED LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM. THE GFS PLACEMENT OF LOW(S) IS  
CURRENTLY WELL TO THE EAST AND SUGGESTS MORE OF A SPLIT FLOW TYPE  
TRANSITION WITH A LOW TO THE NORTH AND SOUTH WITH LITTLE IMPACT FOR  
THE CWA, THE EC A BIT FARTHER WEST AND MORE SUPPORTIVE OF WEATHER IN  
THE CWA. NONE SHOW SIGNIFICANT RUN TO RUN CONTINUITY AT THIS POINT.  
WE CAN SEE LIKEWISE TRENDS IN ENSEMBLES WITH MORE PRECIPITATION IN EC  
MEMBERS IN COMPARISON TO GEFS/GEPS MEMBERS. WHILE ITS FUN TO POINT  
OUT THE ONE EC MEMBER WITH 15 INCHES OF SNOW FOR WATERTOWN, ITS ALSO  
IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT ONLY ABOUT 15% SHOW AN ACCUMULATION IN EXCESS  
OF 2 INCHES AND ABOUT 40% AN INCH OR LESS ACCUMULATION.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /12Z TAFS THROUGH 12Z MONDAY/
 
 
ISSUED AT 533 AM CST SUN JAN 4 2026  
 
TERMINALS KABR,KATY,KPIR,KMBG  
 
WIDESPREAD IFR CIGS WILL CONTINUE, ALTHOUGH KPIR/KMBG ARE FORECAST  
TO EVENTUALLY REACH VFR CONDITIONS LATER IN THE AFTERNOON. FURTHER  
EAST ACROSS KABR/KATY, EXPECTING IFR/MVFR CIGS TO CONTINUE THROUGH  
MUCH OF THE TAF PERIOD. WILL ALSO CONTINUE TO SEE FG/BR WITH  
MVFR/IFR VSBY DURING THE MORNING, BUT MAY PERSIST INTO THE  
AFTERNOON AND AGAIN TONIGHT ACROSS KABR/KATY.  
 

 
   
ABR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
SD...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 3 PM CST THIS AFTERNOON FOR  
SDZ006>008-011.  
 
DENSE FOG ADVISORY UNTIL 3 PM CST /2 PM MST/ THIS AFTERNOON FOR  
SDZ003>005-009-010-015>017-034-036-037.  
 
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 1 PM CST /NOON MST/ THIS AFTERNOON  
FOR SDZ003>005-009-010.  
 
MN...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 3 PM CST THIS AFTERNOON FOR MNZ039-  
046.  
 

 
 

 
 
UPDATE...10  
SHORT TERM...TMT  
LONG TERM...07  
AVIATION...TMT  
 
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