794  
FXUS63 KFGF 011951  
AFDFGF  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND  
251 PM CDT SUN JUN 1 2025  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- HEAVY SMOKE CONTINUES TODAY WITH POTENTIAL IMPACTS TO ALL  
POPULATION GROUPS.  
 
- ISOLATED SEVERE STORMS ARE POSSIBLE MONDAY AFTERNOON/EVENING  
FOR PARTS OF SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA AND WEST CENTRAL  
MINNESOTA.  
 
- 30% CHANCE FOR MORE THAN 1 INCH OF RAIN THROUGH TUESDAY IN  
SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA.  
 

 
   
DISCUSSION
 
 
ISSUED AT 218 PM CDT SUN JUN 1 2025  
   
..SYNOPSIS
 
 
MUCH LIKE YESTERDAY, THE SURFACE PATTERN THIS AFTERNOON FEATURES  
WIDESPREAD SMOKE ALOFT AND AREAS OF SMOKE NEAR THE SURFACE,  
OCCASIONALLY REDUCING VISIBILITIES TO 1-4 MILES. THE GREATEST  
VISIBILITY ISSUES HAVE BEEN IN EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND THIS  
SHOULD TRANSLATE EASTWARD LATER THIS EVENING THANKS TO  
SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS.  
 
BASED ON WATER VAPOR IMAGERY, THE LARGE SCALE UPPER RIDGE IS  
HAVING A FAIRLY SLOW PROGRESSION RIGHT NOW, WITH THE AXIS  
CENTERED ROUGHLY FROM MINOT THROUGH WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA THIS  
AFTERNOON. AS THIS RIDGE SLIDES SOUTHEASTWARD IN ADVANCE OF A  
PRETTY STRONG SHORTWAVE TROUGH/COLD FRONT, SOUTHERLY FLOW SHOULD  
ALLOW FOR SOME MOISTURE ADVECTION INTO OUR AREA. FORCING ALONG  
THE COLD FRONT SHOULD BE CONDUCIVE FOR SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS,  
ALTHOUGH THE STRONGEST TRENDS HAVE BEEN FURTHER SOUTH WITH A  
FASTER FORWARD PROGRESSION OF THE FRONT.  
 
ONCE THIS FRONT PUSHES THROUGH, GUIDANCE BRINGS IN ANOTHER ROUND  
OF SMOKE, ALTHOUGH NEAR-SURFACE CONCENTRATIONS AREN'T NEARLY AS  
HIGH AS THEY WERE THIS WEEKEND, SO THE PROBABILITY FOR  
VISIBILITY IMPACTS ARE LOWER. THEREAFTER, FLOW ALOFT WEAKENS  
CONSIDERABLY OVER THE NORTHERN PLAINS, SO THE PROBABILITY FOR  
WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW AT THIS TIME. THERE IS A  
SIGNAL FOR ANOTHER STRONG COLD FRONT TO COME THROUGH NEXT  
WEEKEND BRINGING WITH IT THE POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE STORMS FROM  
ML AND AI BASED CONVECTIVE PROBABILITIES, ALTHOUGH  
PREDICTABILITY IS LOW FOR IMPACTS.  
   
..SEVERE STORM POTENTIAL MONDAY
 
 
MONDAY REMAINS UNCERTAIN WITH REGARD TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORM  
POTENTIAL AHEAD OF (OR ALONG) THE COLD FRONT. WHILE GUIDANCE HAS  
CONVERGED A TAD ON LOCATION, THERE STILL REMAINS A LARGE SPREAD  
IN WHETHER OR NOT WE STILL HAVE IT IN OUR AREA DURING PEAK  
DIURNAL HEATING. WHAT HAS BEEN CONSISTENT IS THE THIN DEWPOINT  
MAXIMUM JUST AHEAD OF THE FRONT, MAXIMIZING INSTABILITY RELATIVE  
TO THE SURROUNDINGS. THAT SAID, THERE ARE DISCREPANCIES IN HOW  
HIGH SURFACE DEWPOINTS WILL END UP BEING (RANGES BETWEEN THE  
10TH PERCENTILE OF LOW 50S TO THE 90TH OF MID 60S, WITH A  
GENERAL IQR BETWEEN ~55-62). THIS IS BECAUSE OF CONVECTION THAT  
SHOULD FIRE THIS AFTERNOON IN WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA AND CREATE  
VERY STRONG OUTFLOW FORCING THE COLD FRONT EASTWARD. A SURFACE  
LOW RESPONSE HAS BEEN CONSISTENT IN SOUTH DAKOTA ACROSS CAMS,  
SO THIS LIKELY WILL DIVERT THE BEST INSTABILITY FROM OUR AREA.  
IF THIS SCENARIO COMES TO FRUITION, THE SEVERE PROBABILITIES  
WILL BE LOWER, WHILE A LACK OF A SURFACE PRESSURE RESPONSE (OR A  
STRONG ONE AT LEAST) WOULD BRING BETTER INSTABILITY TO OUR AREA.  
 
REGARDLESS OF INSTABILITY, ONE THING THAT ISN'T UNCERTAIN IS THE  
FORCING BEING STRONG ENOUGH TO BREAK THROUGH ANY RESIDUAL  
CAPPING IN THE AFTERNOON. THUNDERSTORMS WILL FORM AHEAD OF THE  
COLD FRONT BY AROUND 18-21Z AND PROGRESS NORTHEASTWARD. WITH THE  
STRONG FORCING AND LARGE FRONT-PARALLEL COMPONENT TO THE SHEAR,  
THE MOST LIKELY SCENARIO IS MULTIPLE THUNDERSTORMS RUNNING INTO  
EACH OTHER AND CREATING MULTICELLULAR CLUSTERS.  
 
WEAK UPPER FLOW WHERE STORMS FIRE AHEAD OF THE FRONT COMBINED  
WITH RELATIVELY DRY MOISTURE PROFILES SHOULD KEEP THE SEVERE  
RISK FOR OUR AREA TO A FAIRLY SHORT TIMEFRAME (BARRING FRONTAL  
STALL, ALTHOUGH THIS SCENARIO IS UNLIKELY AT THIS TIME DUE TO  
CONSISTENT STRONG COLD AIR ADVECTION AND LIMITED WARM AIR  
ADVECTION AHEAD OF THE FRONT). THERMAL PROFILES ARE NOT TERRIBLE  
IMPRESSIVE FOR TORNADOES, SO THE GENERAL THINKING IS IN LINE  
WITH PREVIOUS MESSAGING: DAMAGING WIND GUSTS TO 60 MPH AND  
PING-PONG BALL SIZE HAIL. SOME OUTLIER CAMS DO FIRE OFF  
SUPERCELLS/UH TRACKS FROM A WEAK MESOSCALE RESPONSE, BUT GIVEN  
THE LIMITED CAMS DISPLAYING THIS WITHIN THE HREF ENSEMBLE, THIS  
APPEARS TO BE A FAIRLY LOW PREDICTABILITY SCENARIO.  
   
..RAINFALL POTENTIAL THROUGH TUESDAY
 
 
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP AROUND A COLD FRONT  
MONDAY AFTERNOON, WITH MORE WIDESPREAD SHOWERS ON THE BACKSIDE  
OF THE COLD FRONT. THE GENERAL FRONTAL POSITION BY NOON TOMORROW  
RANGES FROM AS FAR NORTHWEST AS AROUND FARGO TO AS FAR SOUTHEAST  
AS ALEXANDRIA. THE FRONTAL ORIENTATION WILL BE SOUTHWEST TO  
NORTHEAST, WITH ANYONE AHEAD OF THIS FRONT LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE  
THUNDERSTORMS AND SEVERE STORMS. AROUND THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY TO  
JUST BEHIND IT, MUCAPE SHOULD BE ENOUGH TO GENERATE A FEW  
THUNDERSTORMS BEHIND THE FRONT, HOWEVER SEVERE POTENTIAL WILL BE  
SIGNIFICANTLY LIMITED ON THE BACKSIDE OF THE FRONT.  
 
BEHIND THE FRONT, EXPECT WIDESPREAD SHOWERS, WITH DECREASING  
THUNDER PROBABILITIES AS YOU HEAD FURTHER NORTH AND WEST.  
RAINFALL TOTALS WILL BE MUCH LESS THAN WHERE THE THUNDERSTORMS  
FORM ALONG THE COLD FRONT, WITH THE GENERAL RANGE ON THE  
NORTHWEST END OF 0.10-0.50" AND THE REGION AHEAD OF THE FRONT  
WITH A 30% CHANCE TO EXCEED AN INCH. HIGHER RAINFALL TOTALS AT  
YOUR LOCATION WILL DEPEND ON HOW FAST THAT COLD FRONT MOVES  
THROUGH AND WHERE IT IS BY PEAK HEATING TOMORROW. RIGHT NOW, IT  
APPEARS IT WILL MOST LIKELY BE THROUGH FARGO UP THROUGH BAUDETTE  
SOMETIME AFTER 3 PM. REMEMBER, VARIATIONS IN HOW FAST IT MOVES  
THROUGH WILL SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE YOUR LIGHTNING AND HEAVY RAIN  
THREAT, SO PAY ATTENTION TO CONTINUED UPDATES AS THE FRONT MOVES  
THROUGH.  
 
SHOWERS SHOULD CONTINUE TO LINGER THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY MORNING  
AND WILL BE CLEARED OUT BY TUESDAY AFTERNOON.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z MONDAY/
 
 
ISSUED AT 1245 PM CDT SUN JUN 1 2025  
 
FLIGHT CATEGORY CHANGES WILL CONTINUE TO BE CAUSED BY NEAR  
SURFACE SMOKE. MVFR TO IFR VISIBILITIES CAN BE EXPECTED TO  
CONTINUE IN EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA WITH AN EVENTUAL TRANSLATION  
EASTWARD INTO NORTHWEST MINNESOTA. THE QUESTION RIGHT NOW FOR NW  
MN IS HOW LOW VISIBILITIES GET AS THIS CONCENTRATION SHIFTS  
EASTWARD. GIVEN LOW CONFIDENCE, FOR NOW IT HAS BEEN KEPT TO  
BETWEEN MVFR TO VFR. CONDITIONS SHOULD IMPROVE TOWARDS THE END  
OF THE TAF PERIOD AS HIGHER CONCENTRATIONS EXIT THE AREA.  
 
A FRONT WILL SWEEP THROUGH THE AREA AFTER 00Z SHIFTING WINDS TO  
NORTHERLY. THERE IS HIGH SPREAD IN POTENTIAL DIRECTIONS BETWEEN  
330-090 TOMORROW MORNING, PARTICULARLY AT TVF/FAR/GFK, SO BARE  
THAT IN MIND WHEN LOOKING AT THE CURRENT TAF FORECAST. SHOWERS  
WILL BEGIN TO DEVELOP NEAR DEVILS LAKE BY THE END OF THE TAF  
PERIOD AS WELL AND SHOULD BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD THROUGH THE  
AFTERNOON TOMORROW.  
 

 
   
FGF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
ND...NONE.  
MN...NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
DISCUSSION...PERROUX  
AVIATION...PERROUX  
 
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