264  
FXUS63 KFSD 190433  
AFDFSD  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD  
1033 PM CST WED DEC 18 2024  
   
KEY MESSAGES  
 
- A FAST MOVING CLIPPER LIKE SYSTEM WILL MOVE THROUGH TONIGHT  
AND THURSDAY. PRECIPITATION, MAINLY SNOW BUT POSSIBLY MIXED  
WEST EARLY, WILL BE POSSIBLE LATE TONIGHT INTO THURSDAY  
MORNING.  
 
- STRONG WINDS WILL DEVELOP IN THE WAKE OF THIS SNOW, WITH  
GUSTS OF 40 TO 60 MPH POSSIBLE ALONG WITH SCATTERED SNOW  
SHOWERS IN THE AFTERNOON. THIS COULD CAUSE REDUCED VISIBILITY.  
 
- DRY CONDITIONS RETURN FOR THE END OF THE WEEK AND WEEKEND WITH  
TEMPERATURES MODERATING BACK TO NEAR TO ABOVE AVERAGE.  
 
- CHANCES FOR ANY WIDESPREAD TRAVEL TROUBLES REMAINS VERY LOW FOR  
NEXT WEEK.  
 
 
   
DISCUSSION  
 
ISSUED AT 322 PM CST WED DEC 18 2024  
 
SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE CURRENTLY SITUATED ACROSS THE REGION WILL  
SLIDE TO THE EAST OVERNIGHT, THIS AS SURFACE TROUGH/UPPER LEVEL  
SHORTWAVE TRACKS ACROSS THE DAKOTAS INTO THURSDAY MORNING. OUT AHEAD  
OF THOSE FEATURES, MIDLEVEL WARM AIR ADVECTION WILL OVERSPREAD THE  
REGION, WITH INCREASING LIFT PROVIDED BY AN UPPER LEVEL JET DIVING  
FROM WESTERN SD INTO IA DURING THE NIGHT TIME HOURS. IN RESPONSE TO  
THAT, LOOK FOR LIGHT PRECIPITATION TO DEVELOP IN AREAS GENERALLY  
FROM THE INTERSTATE 90 CORRIDOR AND NORTHWARD AFTER 06Z TONIGHT AND  
CONTINUE INTO EARLY MORNING ON THURSDAY - THIS COLLOCATED WITH THE  
BETTER LIFT AND DEEPER MOISTURE. MOST MODEL SOUNDINGS INDICATE THE  
POSSIBILITY OF A WINTRY MIX OF PRECIPITATION POSSIBLE THROUGH THE  
NORTHERN JAMES RIVER VALLEY WITH THE ONSET OF THE PRECIPITATION -  
WITH A RATHER DEEP ELEVATED WARM LAYER PRESENT OVER THE AREA. EVEN  
SO, THERE IS ALSO DRY AIR IN THE LOW LEVELS WHICH WILL KEEP ANY  
PRECIPITATION LIGHT, THOUGH WE CANNOT RULE OUT A BRIEF PERIOD WITH  
THE POTENTIAL FOR A LIGHT GLAZE OF ICE THROUGH THAT AREA. FARTHER TO  
THE EAST, SNOW LOOKS TO BE THE MORE LIKELY PRECIPITATION TYPE, WITH  
MODELS AND ENSEMBLES SUPPORTING AMOUNTS AROUND AN INCH FROM EAST  
CENTRAL SD THROUGH SOUTHWESTERN MN INTO EARLY THURSDAY MORNING.  
TEMPERATURES EARLY TONIGHT WILL BE IN THE TEENS AND 20S, THEN WITH  
WARM AIR ADVECTION OUT AHEAD OF THE SYSTEM TEMPERATURES WILL RISE  
INTO THE 20S AND 30S BY THURSDAY MORNING.  
 
STRONG COLD AIR ADVECTION SWEEPS INTO THE AREA ON THURSDAY BEHIND  
THE SYSTEM, AND WITH STEEPENING LOW LEVEL LAPSE RATES, MIXING WILL  
TAP INTO STRONG WINDS ALOFT. SOUNDINGS ARE INDICATING WINDS RUNNING  
AROUND 55 TO 60 KTS AT THE TOP OF THE MIXED LAYER THROUGH SOUTH  
CENTRAL SD, WITH 40 TO 45 KTS JUST TO THE EAST OF THAT AREA. IN  
LIGHT OF THAT, ISSUED A HIGH WIND WARNING FOR SOUTH CENTRAL SD, AND  
A WIND ADVISORY BORDERING THIS AREA TO THE EAST FOR 15Z TO 00Z ON  
THURSDAY. A SECONDARY SHORTWAVE WILL DIVE ACROSS THE REGION ON  
THURSDAY AFTERNOON, AND MOST HI-RES MODELS ARE SHOWING THE  
POSSIBILITY OF SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS - MAINLY OVER EAST CENTRAL SD  
AND SOUTHWESTERN MN. ALTHOUGH ANY ADDITIONAL ACCUMULATION WILL  
REMAIN A FEW TENTHS, ANY SNOW THAT FALLS TONIGHT OR IS ALREADY  
LAYING ON THE GROUND WILL BLOW AROUND WITH THE WINDS AS MENTIONED  
ABOVE. FORTUNATELY, THE STRONGEST WINDS ARE OFFSET FROM AREAS  
EXPECTING TO OR ALREADY HAVING RECEIVED SNOW - THOUGH REDUCED  
VISIBILITIES (POSSIBLY AS LOW AS ONE MILE) ARE LIKELY IN SNOW COVERED  
LOCATIONS/OR WHERE SNOW IS FALLING AND TRAVEL MAY BECOME DIFFICULT.  
RELATED TO THE STRONG COLD AIR ADVECTION AS MENTIONED ABOVE, WHILE  
TEMPERATURES WILL RISE INTO THE 20S AND 30S EARLY IN THE DAY,  
READINGS WILL FALL DURING THE AFTERNOON.  
 
AFTER THE DEPARTURE OF MAINLY LIGHT SNOW OR FLURRIES ON THURSDAY  
EVENING, THE MUCH COLDER AIR SETTLES SOUTHWARD FOR THURSDAY NIGHT  
THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT. LOWS ON THURSDAY NIGHT WILL BE IN THE SINGLE  
DIGITS, THEN IN THE SINGLE DIGITS AND LOWER TEENS FOR FRIDAY NIGHT.  
HIGHS ON FRIDAY WILL REMAIN IN THE TEENS TO LOWER 20S.  
 
AFTER THAT, A LESS AMPLIFIED UPPER LEVEL PATTERN WILL LEAD TO  
WARMING TEMPERATURES INTO CHRISTMAS WEEK - TRENDING TO ABOVE NORMAL  
FOR SUNDAY THROUGH CHRISTMAS. NO SIGNIFICANT WEATHER IS EXPECTED  
THROUGH THE PERIOD, WITH ONLY SMALL LIGHT PRECIPITATION CHANCES  
(20% OR LESS) SOME TIME AROUND THE CHRISTMAS EVE TIME FRAME.  
 
 
   
AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z FRIDAY/  
 
ISSUED AT 1031 PM CST WED DEC 18 2024  
 
A STRONG SURFACE LOW PRESSURE WILL BE SLIDING ACROSS THE NORTHERN  
PLAINS THROUGHOUT THE REST OF THE OVERNIGHT PERIOD, WHICH HAS  
RESULTED IN BREEZY SOUTHEASTERLY WINDS. AS THE WINDS BEGIN TO SHIFT  
TOWARDS WESTERLY FROM WEST TO EAST, A SMALL WINDOW OF FREEZING RAIN,  
SLEET, AND/OR LIGHT SNOW, WILL BE POSSIBLE PRIOR TO DAYBREAK. THIS  
WILL MOSTLY IMPACT AREAS ALONG AND NORTH OF I-90 WHERE A LIGHT GLAZE  
OF ICE MAY BE POSSIBLE, WITH MINOR SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF UP TO HALF  
AN INCH PRIOR TO DAYBREAK, POSSIBLY CLOSER TO AN INCH FOR AREAS  
NEAR THE MARSHALL, MN AREA.  
 
WINDS PICK UP THROUGHOUT THE MORNING HOURS, GUSTING 45 TO 60 MPH  
ALONG AND WEST OF A LINE FROM CORRECTIONVILLE, IA TO SIOUX FALLS, SD  
TO HURON, SD, STRONGEST OVER SOUTH-CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA. WIND  
GUSTS TO 40 MPH ARE STILL EXPECTED EAST OF THE AFOREMENTIONED  
LINE. WITH ANOTHER ROUND OF LIGHT SNOW SHOWERS ACROSS  
SOUTHWESTERN MINNESOTA AND ADJACENT AREAS DURING THE AFTERNOON,  
PATCHY TO AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW ARE POSSIBLE FOR AREAS THAT SEE  
OR HAVE SEEN RECENT SNOW ACCUMULATION, LEADING TO POSSIBLE  
REDUCTION IN VISIBILITY.  
 
 
   
FSD WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES  
 
SD...WIND ADVISORY FROM 9 AM TO 6 PM CST THURSDAY FOR SDZ038-  
052>054-059>062-065>067-069>071.  
HIGH WIND WARNING FROM 9 AM TO 6 PM CST THURSDAY FOR SDZ050-  
057-058-063-064-068.  
MN...NONE.  
IA...WIND ADVISORY FROM 9 AM TO 6 PM CST THURSDAY FOR IAZ012-020-  
031.  
NE...WIND ADVISORY FROM 9 AM TO 6 PM CST THURSDAY FOR NEZ013-014.  
 
 
 
 
 
DISCUSSION...JM  
AVIATION...APT  
CLICK HERE TO GO TO PREVIOUS BULLETINS.
The Nexlab SD Page
The Nexlab IA Page
The Nexlab MN Page
The Nexlab NE Page
Main Text Page