612  
FXUS63 KJKL 220659 AAC  
AFDJKL  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY  
259 AM EDT SAT AUG 22 2026  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- ANOTHER COLD FRONT WILL BRING A POSSIBILITY OF SHOWERS AND  
THUNDERSTORMS TO THE AREA TODAY.  
 
- SOME STORMS ON SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING COULD PRODUCE  
STRONG TO LOCALLY DAMAGING WIND GUSTS AND EVEN SOME HAIL.  
 
- NOTICEABLY COOLER AND LESS HUMID AIR WILL THEN ARRIVE TO START  
THE NEW WEEK, WITH MAINLY DRY WEATHER.  
 

 
   
UPDATE
 
 
ISSUED AT 1100 PM EDT FRI AUG 21 2026  
 
NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES WERE MADE TO THE FORECAST WITH MAINLY JUST  
THE INCLUSION OF THE LATEST OBS AND TRENDS FOR THE T/TD/SKY GRIDS.  
THESE MINOR ADJUSTMENTS HAVE BEEN SENT TO THE NDFD AND WEB SERVERS  
ALONG WITH A FRESHENING OF THE SAFS AND ZONES.  
 
UPDATE ISSUED AT 725 PM EDT FRI AUG 21 2026  
 
23Z SFC ANALYSIS SHOWS WEAK HIGH PRESSURE OVER EASTERN KENTUCKY  
AND THIS IS WORKING TO KEEP THE WINDS LIGHT AND CLEAR THE SKIES AS  
THE ISOLATED SHOWERS CONTINUE TO FADE OUT. CURRENTLY,  
TEMPERATURES ARE RUNNING IN THE UPPER 70S TO LOW 80S WITH SOME  
VALLEYS REPORTING MID 70S. MEANWHILE, AMID LIGHT AND VARIABLE  
WINDS, DEWPOINTS ARE IN THE MID 60S TO LOWER 70S - HIGHEST AND  
STICKIEST SOUTH. HAVE UPDATED THE FORECAST MAINLY TO ADD IN THE  
LATEST OBS AND TRENDS FOR THE T/TD/SKY GRIDS BUT ALSO TO DROP THE  
POPS OFF THROUGH THE REST OF THE EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. THESE  
MINOR ADJUSTMENTS HAVE BEEN SENT TO THE NDFD AND WEB SERVERS ALONG  
WITH A FRESHENING OF THE HWO, SAFS, AND ZONES.  
 

 
   
SHORT TERM
 
(THIS EVENING THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT)  
ISSUED AT 330 PM EDT FRI AUG 21 2026  
 
PUFFY CUMULUS ARE BUBBLING UP ACROSS EASTERN KENTUCKY THIS  
AFTERNOON, WITH A FEW OF THEM MATURING INTO WIDELY SCATTERED  
SHOWERS AND EVEN A FEW ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS. THAT ASIDE,  
TEMPERATURES ARE ON THE MILD SIDE FOR LATE AUGUST, WITH READINGS  
RANGING IN THE LOW TO MID 80S OUTSIDE OF CONVECTION. AT THE SURFACE,  
A WEAK WAVE OF LOW PRESSURE IS TRAVERSING FAR SOUTHEAST KENTUCKY  
ALONG A WAVY COLD FRONTAL BOUNDARY. ALOFT, 500 HPA TROUGHING IS  
IN PLACE OVER THE GREAT LAKES AND OHIO VALLEY WITH AN EMBEDDED  
VORT MAX JUST UPSTREAM OVER CENTRAL KENTUCKY. A SECOND NOTABLE 500  
HPA VORT MAX IS DROPPING INTO THE TROUGH FROM NORTHWESTERN  
ONTARIO. IT IS ATTENDED BY A WEAK SURFACE LOW OVER LAKE SUPERIOR  
FROM WHICH A COLD FRONT SWEEPS OUT AN ARC, FIRST SOUTHWESTWARD TO  
ALONG THE IOWA/NEBRASKA BORDER AND THEN WEST-NORTHWEST TO ALONG  
THE NORTHERN ROCKIES.  
 
THE ONGOING ISOLATED TO SCATTERED CONVECTION IS LIKELY TO INCREASE  
SLIGHTLY IN COVERAGE OVER THE NEXT HOUR OR TWO BEFORE GRADUALLY  
DIMINISHING WITH THE LOSS OF DAYTIME HEATING AS WE HEAD THROUGH THE  
EVENING. AS THE WAVY FRONTAL BOUNDARY FINALLY SINKS WELL SOUTH OF  
THE AREA, CLEARING SKIES, LIGHT WINDS, AND AMPLE MOISTURE WILL SET  
THE STAGE FOR RENEWED RADIATIONAL FOG FORMATION OVERNIGHT,  
ESPECIALLY IN TYPICAL SHELTERED VALLEY LOCATIONS, THOUGH AT LEAST  
PATCHY FOG MAY DEVELOP ELSEWHERE. IT WILL BE SEASONABLE, WITH  
TEMPERATURES DIPPING BACK INTO THE MID 60S IN MOST SPOTS.  
 
LOOKING AHEAD TO SATURDAY, THE SECOND VORT MAX WILL CARVE A DEEPER  
PARENT TROUGH AS IT PRESSES INTO THE LOWER AND MID-OHIO VALLEY.  
THIS WILL BE ATTENDED BY THE SURFACE COLD FRONT, WHICH IS  
CURRENTLY FAVORED IN SHORT-RANGE MODEL GUIDANCE TO PASS THROUGH  
EASTERN KENTUCKY DURING THE ~5 PM TO MIDNIGHT TIMEFRAME. AHEAD OF  
THIS BOUNDARY AND UPPER-LEVEL DISTURBANCE, STRENGTHENING FLOW  
ALOFT WILL YIELD 30 TO 40 KTS OF EBWD WHILE GOOD HEATING IS  
FAVORED TO BUILD 2000 TO 3000 J/KG OF MUCAPE SATURDAY AFTERNOON.  
WITH AMPLE DRY AIR ALOFT AND DCAPE VALUES NEAR OR OVER 1000 J/KG,  
DOWNDRAFTS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG TO DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE  
POSSIBLE ON AN ISOLATED SCALE. ADDITIONALLY, THE CAPE PROFILE IS  
WELL-PROPORTIONED WITHIN THE HAIL GROWTH ZONE AND HODOGRAPHS ARE  
RELATIVELY STRAIGHT. THEREFORE, IF ANY OF THE STRONGER CELLS CAN  
ADOPT SUPERCELLULAR CHARACTERISTICS, ISOLATED HAIL IS ALSO A  
REASONABLE SECONDARY POSSIBILITY. ACCORDINGLY, SPC HAS MAINTAINED  
A MARGINAL RISK (1/5) FOR DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL ACROSS  
NEARLY ALL OF THE JKL CWA. HEADING INTO SATURDAY EVENING AND  
NIGHT, CONVECTION SHOULD DIMINISH AS THE FRONT AND UPPER-LEVEL  
DISTURBANCE DEPART. IN THEIR WAKE, CLEARING SKIES AND LIGHT WINDS  
WILL ONCE AGAIN SET THE STAGE FOR AT LEAST SOME FOG IN THE VALLEYS,  
THOUGH WEAK LOW-LEVEL NORTHWEST FLOW WILL BE A MITIGATING FACTOR.  
SATURDAY NIGHT'S LOW TEMPERATURES ARE FORECAST TO RANGE IN THE  
LOW TO MID 60S.  
   
LONG TERM
 
(SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY)  
ISSUED AT 330 PM EDT FRI AUG 21 2026  
 
THE LONG TERM PERIOD WILL START WITH A RELATIVELY COMFORTABLE AIR  
MASS IN PLACE, BY AUGUST STANDARDS. SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE SUPPLYING  
THE COOLER AND DRIER AIR SHOULD BE RIDGING FROM WESTERN ONTARIO TO  
THE LOWER OHIO VALLEY, WHILE LOW PRESSURE (SURFACE AND ALOFT) IS  
JUST NORTH OF THE GREAT LAKES. THE UPPER TROUGH SURROUNDING THE LOW  
WILL COVER MOST OF THE EASTERN CONUS. OUR LOWEST DEW POINTS FROM  
THIS AIR MASS ARE FORECAST FROM MONDAY INTO TUESDAY, WITH READINGS  
IN THE 50S, ALSO ALLOWING FOR LOWS IN THAT RANGE. IN FACT, THE NBM  
AND MEXMOS ARE ONLY A COUPLE DEGREES OFF THE RECORD OF 55 AT JKL ON  
THE 25TH.  
 
THE LOW AND THE TROUGH WEAKEN BY MIDWEEK AS THEY DRIFT EAST, AND A  
WARMING TREND GETS UNDERWAY LOCALLY AS GEOPOTENTIAL HEIGHTS RISE.  
THE FORECAST THEN GETS MESSIER MOVING INTO THE LATE WEEK TIME FRAME.  
ANOTHER UPPER LOW OR TROUGH IS EXPECTED TO MOVE EAST SOUTHEAST TO  
SOUTHEAST ONTARIO, WHICH WILL DEEPENING A LARGER SCALE UPPER TROUGH  
OVER THE EASTERN CONUS AGAIN. THIS SUPPORTS A COLD FRONT TO MOVE  
SOUTHEAST THROUGH THE MIDWEST. THERE IS NOT AGREEMENT ON THE TIMING  
OF THIS FRONT TO ARRIVE HERE, OR ON THE SURFACE PATTERN SETTING UP  
IN ADVANCE. AT THIS POINT, ONLY A GENERALIZED FORECAST IS PRACTICAL,  
WITH AN INCREASE IN MOISTURE/DEW POINTS AND POP AHEAD OF THE FRONT  
LATE IN THE WEEK.  
 

 
   
AVIATION
 
(FOR THE 06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z SATURDAY NIGHT)  
ISSUED AT 235 AM EDT SAT AUG 22 2026  
 
FOG HAS FORMED IN THE VALLEYS, ESPECIALLY SOUTH OF KIOB AND KSYM  
AND IT HAD BEGUN TO SPREAD TO NEAR KLOZ AS OF ISSUANCE TIME. WITH  
A DEEPENING NOCTURNAL INVERSION, THIS MAY LIFT INTO MOST OR ALL OF  
THE REMAINING TAF SITES, AT LEAST BRIEFLY, BETWEEN 08Z TO 12Z WITH  
MVFR TO IFR IF NOT LOWER REDUCTIONS AT TIMES. FOG SHOULD LIFT AND  
DISSIPATE BETWEEN 12Z AND 14Z AND GIVE WAY TO CUMULUS DEVELOPMENT  
BY 16Z. A COLD FRONT AND DISTURBANCE WILL APPROACH DURING PEAK  
HEATING AND RESULT IN ISOLATED TO SCATTERED CONVECTION BETWEEN  
ABOUT 17Z AND 01Z. SOME OF THE STORMS COULD CONTAIN STRONG TO  
DAMAGING WIND GUSTS AND SOME GUSTIER WINDS WERE INCLUDED IN A  
PROB30 GROUP FOR KIOB AND KSYM ALTHOUGH PROB30 GROUPS FOR THUNDER  
WERE INCLUDED FOR THE REMAINING TAF LOCATIONS FOR A FEW HOURS  
BETWEEN 18Z AND 00Z. WINDS WILL BE LIGHT AND VARIABLE TO BEGIN THE  
PERIOD, BUT BECOME WSW TO W AT 5 TO 10KT BETWEEN 15Z AND 00Z.  
WINDS WILL TREND TO THE NORTHWEST BEHIND THE FRONT TO END THE  
PERIOD AND SLACKEN. STRONG GUSTS AS PREVIOUSLY NOTED IN EXCESS OF  
30KT ARE POSSIBLE WITH ANY THUNDERSTORMS.  
 

 
   
JKL WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
UPDATE...GREIF  
SHORT TERM...GEERTSON  
LONG TERM...HAL  
AVIATION...JP  
 
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