788  
FXUS66 KSEW 240346  
AFDSEW  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA  
746 PM PST FRI JAN 23 2026  
   
UPDATE
 
GENERALLY CLEAR SKIES OVER MUCH OF W WA THIS EVENING  
ALTHOUGH THERE ARE A COUPLE OF PATCHES OF FOG IN PLACE...BUT  
TRENDING THINNER. WITH TEMPERATURES ALREADY GENERALLY IN THE 30S FOR  
MUCH OF THE AREA, MANY OBS SITES ALREADY AT OR NEAR FREEZING, WHICH  
WILL HELP TO RESTRICT ANY FOG DEVELOPMENT, ALTHOUGH SOME ISOLATED  
STRATUS MAY BE POSSIBLE. INHERITED FORECAST HANDLES THIS WELL. NO  
EVENING UPDATES NEEDED.  
 

 
   
SYNOPSIS
 
AN UPPER RIDGE WILL REMAIN OVER WESTERN WASHINGTON  
THROUGH THE WEEKEND. COLD TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED DURING THE  
OVERNIGHT PERIODS. A WEAK SYSTEM WILL BRUSH THE COAST ON MONDAY.  
THE RIDGE WILL REBUILD TUESDAY BEFORE MOVING INLAND ON WEDNESDAY  
AS ANOTHER WEAK SYSTEM MAY REACH THE AREA.  
 

 
   
SHORT TERM /TODAY THROUGH SUNDAY/
 
CLEAR SKIES ACROSS THE AREA  
THIS AFTERNOON WITH AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE POSITIONED OFFSHORE.  
FRASER OUTFLOW CONTINUES THIS AFTERNOON ACROSS WESTERN WHATCOM  
COUNTY BEFORE WEAKENING TONIGHT. THE UPPER RIDGE WILL PROMOTE  
DRY CONDITIONS THROUGH THE WEEKEND. THE MAIN WEATHER CONCERN  
WILL BE COLD OVERNIGHT TEMPERATURES SATURDAY AND SUNDAY MORNING.  
WIDESPREAD OVERNIGHT LOWS IN THE 20S ARE EXPECTED BOTH MORNINGS,  
WITH UPPER TEENS POSSIBLE IN LOCALIZED LOCATIONS. TEMPERATURES  
IN THE METRO AREAS WILL DROP TOWARDS 25 DEGREES TONIGHT INTO  
EARLY SATURDAY, ESPECIALLY AWAY FROM THE WATER. FOR THIS REASON,  
HAVE ISSUED A COLD WEATHER ADVISORY FROM EVERETT TO TACOMA,  
INCLUDING PORTIONS OF THE KITSAP PENINSULA. THE COLDEST  
TEMPERATURES WILL BE AWAY FROM THE WATER, WITH TEMPS NEAR 30  
ALONG THE PUGET SOUND COAST. MAKE SURE TO WEAR APPROPRIATE  
CLOTHING IF YOU'RE HEADING OUT THIS WEEKEND. ADDITIONAL COLD  
WEATHER ADVISORY HEADLINES MAY BE NEEDED ON SUNDAY. OTHERWISE,  
PATCHY FREEZING FOG MAY DEVELOP EACH MORNING, MAINLY FROM  
OLYMPIA SOUTHWARDS.  
 

 
   
LONG TERM /SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY/
 
THE AFOREMENTIONED  
UPPER RIDGE WILL FLATTEN LATE SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY AS A WEAK  
WEATHER SYSTEM BRUSHES WESTERN WASHINGTON. AT THIS TIME, ANY QPF  
AMOUNTS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN NOMINAL, IF ANY. THE UPPER RIDGE  
THEN REBOUNDS ON TUESDAY FOR DRY WEATHER AND WARMING  
TEMPERATURES. THE RIDGE AXIS SHIFTS EAST WEDNESDAY INTO THURSDAY  
AS A SYSTEM MAY APPROACH FROM OFFSHORE. HOWEVER, UNCERTAINTY  
CONTINUES IN THE ENSEMBLES IN REGARDS TO THE EXTENT OF  
PRECIPITATION OVER WESTERN WASHINGTON, WITH APPROXIMATELY 40% OF  
THE MULTI-MODEL ENSEMBLE (GEFS, EPS, GEPS) REMAINING DRY  
SOLUTIONS. EITHER WAY, LITTLE IN THE WAY OF IMPACTS ARE EXPECTED  
FOR ANY MIDWEEK PRECIPITATION. TEMPERATURES WILL MODERATE ON  
TUESDAY AND REMAIN NEAR TO SLIGHTLY ABOVE NORMAL INTO LATE WEEK.  
JD  
 

 
   
AVIATION
 
A HIGH-AMPLITUDE RIDGE OFFSHORE IS MAINTAINING  
NORTHWESTERLY FLOW ALOFT ACROSS WESTERN WASHINGTON TONIGHT INTO  
SATURDAY. VFR CONDITIONS PREVAIL ACROSS THE REGION WITH CLEAR SKIES.  
THESE CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH MUCH OF TONIGHT. THERE'S A  
CHANCE (20-25%) THAT IFR OR LOWER CEILINGS MAY DEVELOP EARLY  
SATURDAY MORNING. MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES WILL CONTINUE ONCE AGAIN DURING  
THE DAY ON SATURDAY WITH INCREASING HIGH CLOUDS LATE. NORTHEASTERLY  
WINDS THIS AFTERNOON AROUND 5 TO 10 KT (EXCEPT GUSTS UP TO 25 KT AT  
BLI) WILL SLOWLY EASE TONIGHT, BECOMING LIGHT AND VARIABLE OVERNIGHT  
INTO SATURDAY MORNING. MOSTLY LIGHT N/NE WINDS EXPECTED THROUGHOUT  
THE DAY SATURDAY.  
 
KSEA...VFR CONDITIONS WITH CLEAR SKIES. THESE CONDITIONS WILL  
CONTINUE THROUGH TONIGHT, WITH 20-25% CHANCE OF IFR OR LOWER  
CEILINGS BETWEEN AROUND 14-19Z SATURDAY. WINDS NE 8-15 KT THIS  
AFTERNOON WILL DECREASE TO AROUND 5 KT TONIGHT, AND REMAIN AROUND  
THERE THROUGH SATURDAY MORNING.  
 
62/18  
 

 
   
MARINE
 
BROAD HIGH PRESSURE ACROSS THE NORTHEAST PACIFIC WILL  
REMAIN IN PLACE THROUGH THE FIRST PART OF NEXT WEEK. A WEAK  
THERMAL TROUGH ALONG THE COAST WILL KEEP OFFSHORE FLOW  
CONTINUING THROUGH THE REST OF TODAY, BUT WINDS WILL START TO  
WEAKEN TONIGHT AND THROUGH THE WEEKEND. THE BREEZIEST WINDS WILL  
CONTINUE THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON IN THE ENTRANCE TO THE WEST  
STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA, AS WELL AS THROUGH PORTIONS OF THE  
NORTHERN INLAND WATERS. GUSTS UP TO 20 TO 25 KT WILL CONTINUE  
THIS AFTERNOON IN THESE LOCALIZED SPOTS.  
 
THE NEXT PERIOD OF IMPACTFUL MARINE WEATHER DOESN'T LOOK TO ARRIVE  
UNTIL LATER MONDAY INTO TUESDAY AS A FRONTAL SYSTEM APPROACHES THE  
WEST COAST AND BRINGS BACK INCREASING SOUTHERLY WINDS.  
 
SEAS 3 TO 5 FT WILL CONTINUE THIS WEEKEND, INCREASING TO THE 8-12 FT  
RANGE TUESDAY AND INTO THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK AS SYSTEMS MOVE BACK  
INTO THE AREA.  
 
62  
 

 
   
HYDROLOGY
 
NO RIVER FLOODING IN THE NEXT 7 DAYS.  
 

 
   
SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
WA...COLD WEATHER ADVISORY FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 9 AM PST  
SATURDAY FOR CITY OF SEATTLE-DOWNTOWN EVERETT /  
MARYSVILLE AREA-EASTERN KITSAP COUNTY-EASTSIDE-LOWLANDS  
OF PIERCE AND SOUTHERN KING COUNTIES-SHORELINE / LYNNWOOD  
/ SOUTH EVERETT AREA.  
 
PZ...NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
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