060
FXUS06 KWBC 212002
PMDMRD
PROGNOSTIC DISCUSSION FOR 6 TO 10 AND 8 TO 14 DAY OUTLOOKS
NWS CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER COLLEGE PARK, MD
300 PM EST SUN DECEMBER 21 2025
6-10 DAY OUTLOOK FOR DEC 27 - 31 2025
THE 0Z ECMWF, GEFS, AND CANADIAN ENSEMBLE MEANS PREDICT A HIGHLY AMPLIFIED
CIRCULATION PATTERN OVER NORTH AMERICA AND SURROUNDING REGIONS DURING THE 610
DAY PERIOD. THE MANUAL HEIGHT BLEND IS BASED ON ENSEMBLE MEANS, WEIGHTING THE
ECMWF MODEL MORE HEAVILY DUE TO ITS RECENT HIGHER ANOMALY CORRELATION SKILL.
THE MANUAL BLEND INDICATES A STRONG MID-LEVEL RIDGE CENTERED ACROSS THE
ALEUTIAN ISLANDS AND THE NORTH PACIFIC. DOWNSTREAM, NEGATIVE 500-HPA HEIGHT
ANOMALIES AND MID-LEVEL TROUGHING ARE FORECAST OVER EASTERN MAINLAND ALASKA AND
THE GULF OF ALASKA. ANOTHER TROUGH IS FORECAST OVER THE SOUTHWESTERN CONTIGUOUS
U.S. (CONUS). AN EXPANSIVE AREA OF POSITIVE 500-HPA HEIGHT ANOMALIES IS
FORECAST TO BE CENTERED NEAR THE CENTRAL CONUS, AND ANOTHER AMPLIFIED POSITIVE
MEAN 500-HPA ANOMALY IS EXPECTED OVER THE NORTHEASTERN ATLANTIC, WITH SOME
MID-LEVEL TROUGHING IN BETWEEN THESE TWO FEATURES OVER THE NORTHWESTERN
ATLANTIC. NEAR TO BELOW NORMAL 500-HPA HEIGHTS ARE PREDICTED ACROSS HAWAII
DURING THE 610 DAY PERIOD.
ACROSS THE CONUS, BROADLY POSITIVE 500-HPA HEIGHT ANOMALIES AND ENHANCED MILD
PACIFIC FLOW SHOULD RESULT IN NEAR TO ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES ACROSS MOST OF
THE CONUS. PROBABILITIES FOR ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES EXCEED 80 PERCENT OVER
MUCH OF THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN PLAINS AND PORTIONS OF THE MIDDLE AND LOWER
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY, SUPPORTED BY MOST OF THE DYNAMICAL TEMPERATURE FORECAST
TOOLS. BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE FAVORED OVER PARTS OF THE NORTHEAST UNDER
A PREDICTED TROUGH AND BELOW NORMAL 500-HPA HEIGHTS. IN CONTRAST TO THE CONUS,
BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO BE PERSISTENT AND WIDESPREAD ACROSS
ALL OF ALASKA OUTSIDE THE WESTERN ALEUTIANS, ALTHOUGH THERE MAY BE A BRIEF
PERIOD OF SLIGHTLY MILDER CONDITIONS LATE IN THE PERIOD. ODDS FOR SUBNORMAL
TEMPERATURES EXCEED 80 PERCENT OVER SOUTH-CENTRAL AND UPPER SOUTHEAST ALASKA.
ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE VERY LIKELY ACROSS HAWAII IN THE 610 DAY PERIOD,
CONSISTENT WITH THE TEMPERATURE CONSOLIDATION.
BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION IS LIKELY FOR THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS AND MOST OF
SOUTHWESTERN MAINLAND ALASKA UNDER AND AHEAD OF THE POSITIVE 500-HPA ANOMALY
CENTER. NEAR TO ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION IS SLIGHTLY FAVORED FOR NORTHERN AND
EASTERN MAINLAND ALASKA, AS WELL AS SOUTHEAST ALASKA, CONSISTENT WITH MOST
ENSEMBLE MODEL PRECIPITATION FORECASTS. ENHANCED PROBABILITIES FOR ABOVE NORMAL
PRECIPITATION ARE LIKELY OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST, THE NORTHERN GREAT BASIN,
THE NORTHERN ROCKIES, AND MOST OF THE SOUTHWESTERN AND SOUTH-CENTRAL CONUS,
SUPPORTED BY MOST OF THE DYNAMICAL PRECIPITATION FORECAST TOOLS. BELOW NORMAL
PRECIPITATION IS FORECAST OVER PARTS OF THE NORTHERN PLAINS, THE UPPER
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY, THE UPPER GREAT LAKES, AND MOST OF THE EASTERN SEABOARD,
UNDER ABOVE NORMAL 500-HPA HEIGHTS AND WHERE MODEL FORECASTS ARE IN AGREEMENT.
IN HAWAII, ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION IS FAVORED DURING THE 610 DAY PERIOD,
CONSISTENT WITH THE PRECIPITATION CONSOLIDATION FORECAST.
THE OFFICIAL 6-10 DAY 500-HPA HEIGHT BLEND CONSISTS OF 30% OF TODAY'S 6Z GFS
ENSEMBLE MEAN CENTERED ON DAY 8, 40% OF TODAY'S 0Z EUROPEAN ENSEMBLE MEAN
CENTERED ON DAY 8, AND 30% OF TODAY'S 0Z CANADIAN ENSEMBLE MEAN CENTERED ON DAY
8
FORECAST CONFIDENCE FOR THE 6-10 DAY PERIOD: ABOVE AVERAGE (4 OUT OF 5), DUE TO
GOOD AGREEMENT AMONG ENSEMBLE MODEL FORECASTS, OFFSET BY SOME DIFFERENCES AMONG
TEMPERATURE AND PRECIPITATION FORECAST TOOLS FOR CERTAIN AREAS.
8-14 DAY OUTLOOK FOR DEC 29, 2025 - JAN 04, 2026
THE 0Z ECMWF, GEFS, AND CANADIAN ENSEMBLE MEAN SOLUTIONS FOR THE 814 DAY PERIOD
PREDICT A FAIRLY CONSISTENT 500-HPA CIRCULATION PATTERN RELATIVE TO THE 610 DAY
PERIOD ACROSS NORTH AMERICA AND THE SURROUNDING REGIONS. AN AMPLIFIED MEAN
MID-LEVEL RIDGE REMAINS LIKELY OVER THE NORTH PACIFIC AND THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS.
DOWNSTREAM, MEAN MID-LEVEL TROUGHING AND BELOW NORMAL 500-HPA HEIGHTS ARE
FORECAST OVER AND NEAR SOUTHEAST ALASKA AND THE NORTHWESTERN CONUS, WHILE A
MODERATELY STRONG MID-LEVEL RIDGE AND ABOVE NORMAL 500-HPA HEIGHTS ARE
PREDICTED OVER THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN CONUS. A FAIRLY WEAK MEAN TROUGH IS
STILL ANTICIPATED OFF THE EAST COAST, LEADING INTO A SECOND STRONG MID-LEVEL
RIDGE, WITH THE LARGEST POSITIVE 500-HPA HEIGHT ANOMALIES ANTICIPATED NEAR
ICELAND. TO THE SOUTH, HAWAII WILL LIKELY REMAIN DOWNSTREAM FROM A REGION OF
SUBNORMAL 500-HPA HEIGHTS, KEEPING CYCLONICALLY CURVED MID-LEVEL FLOW ACROSS
THE ISLAND CHAIN DURING THE WEEK-2 PERIOD.
ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE FAVORED FOR MOST OF THE CONUS, WITH THE STRONGEST
CHANCES EXCEEDING 70 PERCENT OVER PARTS OF THE SOUTHERN GREAT PLAINS AND
PORTIONS OF THE MIDDLE AND LOWER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY, UNDER ABOVE NORMAL 500-HPA
HEIGHTS AND SURFACE SOUTHERLY FLOW. NEAR TO BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE
FAVORED FOR MUCH OF THE IMMEDIATE WEST COAST, TIED TO ONSHORE FLOW BRINGING IN
CLOUDS AND PRECIPITATION. FOR THE NORTHEAST, UNDER SUBNORMAL 500-HPA HEIGHTS
JUST UPSTREAM FROM A MODERATE MEAN MID-LEVEL TROUGH AXIS, NEAR NORMAL
TEMPERATURES ARE FAVORED DURING WEEK-2. AT HIGHER LATITUDES, THE AMPLIFIED
RIDGETROUGH COUPLET FROM THE NORTH-CENTRAL PACIFIC INTO ALASKA AND WESTERN
CANADA SHOULD KEEP BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES ENTRENCHED ACROSS MOST OF ALASKA,
ALTHOUGH THE MAGNITUDE AND EXPANSE OF THE COLD AIR WILL WAX AND WANE OVER THE
COURSE OF THE PERIOD. ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE FAVORED FOR HAWAII, WITH
SOMEWHAT HIGHER ODDS THAN DURING THE 610 DAY PERIOD OVER CENTRAL AND EASTERN
PARTS OF THE ISLAND CHAIN.
BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION IS FAVORED FOR SOUTHERN MAINLAND ALASKA IN THE
WEEK-2 PERIOD UNDER ANOMALOUS NORTHERLY FLOW DOWNSTREAM OF THE AMPLIFIED RIDGE.
ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION IS FAVORED FOR NORTHERN AND CENTRAL MAINLAND ALASKA,
CONSISTENT WITH ALL ENSEMBLE MODEL PRECIPITATION FORECASTS. DOWNSTREAM OF THE
TROUGH OVER THE NORTH PACIFIC, ENHANCED PROBABILITIES FOR ABOVE NORMAL
PRECIPITATION ARE LIKELY FOR MOST OF THE WESTERN AND CENTRAL CONUS, SUPPORTED
BY MOST OF THE DYNAMICAL PRECIPITATION FORECAST TOOLS. NEAR TO BELOW NORMAL
PRECIPITATION IS FAVORED FOR MOST OF THE EASTERN CONUS (EXCEPT FOR THE SOUTHERN
FLORIDA PENINSULA, WHERE ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION IS FORECAST), UNDER THE
PREDICTED RIDGE AND ABOVE NORMAL 500-HPA HEIGHTS. THE PRECIPITATION
CONSOLIDATION SUPPORTS ENHANCED PROBABILITIES OF ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION FOR
THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS.
THE OFFICIAL 8-14 DAY 500-HPA HEIGHT BLEND CONSISTS OF: 30% OF TODAY'S 6Z GFS
ENSEMBLE MEAN CENTERED ON DAY 11, 40% OF TODAY'S 0Z EUROPEAN ENSEMBLE MEAN
CENTERED ON DAY 11, AND 30% OF TODAY'S 0Z CANADIAN ENSEMBLE MEAN CENTERED ON
DAY 11
FORECAST CONFIDENCE FOR THE 8-14 DAY PERIOD: ABOUT AVERAGE (3 OUT OF 5), DUE TO
OVERALL AGREEMENT ON THE EVOLVING MID-LEVEL CIRCULATION PATTERN, WITH
DIFFERENCES IN TEMPERATURE AND PRECIPITATION FORECAST TOOLS FOR SOME AREAS.
FORECASTER: LUKE H
NOTES:
THE NOTATION FOR THE CATEGORICAL FORECAST INDICATED ON THE MAPS IS
THE SAME AS THAT IN THE TABLES: A-ABOVE N-NEAR NORMAL B-BELOW
THE TEMPERATURE MAP SHOWS REGIONS WITH > 33% CHANCE OF BEING WARMER
(ORANGE, "A"), COLDER (BLUE, "B"), OR CLOSE TO (GRAY, "N") NORMAL.
LABELS ON THE SHADED LINES GIVE THE PROBABILITY (> 33%) OF THE MORE
LIKELY CATEGORY (B OR A). PROBABILITY OF N IS ALWAYS < 40%.
THE PRECIPITATION MAP SHOWS REGIONS WITH > 33% CHANCE OF BEING
WETTER (GREEN, "A"), DRIER (TAN, "B"), OR CLOSE TO (GRAY, "N")
NORMAL. LABELS ON THE SHADED LINES GIVE THE PROBABILITY (> 33%) OF
THE MORE LIKELY CATEGORY (B OR A). PROBABILITY OF N IS ALWAYS < 40%.
IN THE SOUTHWEST AND OTHER CLIMATOLOGICALLY DRY REGIONS - THERE WILL
BE A GREATER THAN 33.3% CHANCE OF NO PRECIPITATION AND OCCASIONALLY
EVEN A NORMAL (I.E. MEDIAN) VALUE OF ZERO - ESPECIALLY DURING THE DRY
SEASONS. IN SUCH CASES A FORECAST OF NEAR NORMAL IS EFFECTIVELY A
FORECAST OF LITTLE OR NO PRECIPITATION.
THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER USES 1991-2020 BASE PERIOD MEANS AS
REFERENCE IN THE CLIMATE OUTLOOKS.
THE NEXT SET OF LONG-LEAD MONTHLY AND SEASONAL OUTLOOKS WILL BE RELEASED ON
JANUARY 15.
ANALOGS TO THE 5 DAY MEAN OBSERVED PATTERN CENTERED 3 DAYS AGO (D-3)
FOR THE REGION FROM 20N TO 70N LATITUDE AND 175E TO 60W LONGITUDE
INCLUDE THE 5 DAY PERIODS CENTERED ON THE FOLLOWING DATES:
19951201 - 19980102 - 20220103 - 20101212 - 20121202
ANALOGS TO THE 7 DAY MEAN OBSERVED PATTERN CENTERED 4 DAYS AGO (D-4)
FOR THE REGION FROM 20N TO 70N LATITUDE AND 175E TO 60W LONGITUDE
INCLUDE THE 7 DAY PERIODS CENTERED ON THE FOLLOWING DATES:
19951201 - 20121201 - 19980102 - 20101212 - 20081230
6-10 DAY OUTLOOK TABLE
OUTLOOK FOR DEC 27 - 31 2025
STATE TEMP PCPN STATE TEMP PCPN STATE TEMP PCPN
WASHINGTON A A OREGON A A NRN CALIF N A
SRN CALIF A A IDAHO A N NEVADA A A
W MONTANA A A E MONTANA A N WYOMING A A
UTAH A A ARIZONA A A COLORADO A A
NEW MEXICO A A N DAKOTA A N S DAKOTA A N
NEBRASKA A A KANSAS A A OKLAHOMA A A
N TEXAS A A S TEXAS A A W TEXAS A A
MINNESOTA A N IOWA A N MISSOURI A A
ARKANSAS A A LOUISIANA A N WISCONSIN A N
ILLINOIS A A MISSISSIPPI A N MICHIGAN A N
INDIANA A N OHIO A N KENTUCKY A N
TENNESSEE A N ALABAMA A B NEW YORK B N
VERMONT B N NEW HAMP B N MAINE B N
MASS B B CONN B B RHODE IS B B
PENN A B NEW JERSEY N B W VIRGINIA A N
MARYLAND A B DELAWARE N B VIRGINIA A B
N CAROLINA A B S CAROLINA A B GEORGIA A B
FL PNHDL A B FL PENIN A B AK N SLOPE B A
AK ALEUTIAN B B AK WESTERN B B AK INT BSN B N
AK S INT B B AK SO COAST B B AK PNHDL B A
8-14 DAY OUTLOOK TABLE
OUTLOOK FOR DEC 29, 2025 - JAN 04, 2026
STATE TEMP PCPN STATE TEMP PCPN STATE TEMP PCPN
WASHINGTON N A OREGON A A NRN CALIF N A
SRN CALIF A A IDAHO A A NEVADA A A
W MONTANA A A E MONTANA A A WYOMING A A
UTAH A A ARIZONA A A COLORADO A A
NEW MEXICO A A N DAKOTA A A S DAKOTA A A
NEBRASKA A A KANSAS A A OKLAHOMA A A
N TEXAS A A S TEXAS A A W TEXAS A A
MINNESOTA A A IOWA A A MISSOURI A A
ARKANSAS A A LOUISIANA A N WISCONSIN A A
ILLINOIS A A MISSISSIPPI A N MICHIGAN A A
INDIANA A A OHIO A N KENTUCKY A N
TENNESSEE A N ALABAMA A N NEW YORK A B
VERMONT N B NEW HAMP N B MAINE N B
MASS N B CONN N B RHODE IS N B
PENN A B NEW JERSEY A B W VIRGINIA A B
MARYLAND A B DELAWARE A B VIRGINIA A B
N CAROLINA A B S CAROLINA A B GEORGIA A N
FL PNHDL A N FL PENIN A A AK N SLOPE B N
AK ALEUTIAN B B AK WESTERN B N AK INT BSN B N
AK S INT B B AK SO COAST B B AK PNHDL B N
LEGEND
TEMPS WITH RESPECT TO NORMAL PCPN WITH RESPECT TO MEDIAN
A - ABOVE N - NEAR NORMAL A - ABOVE N - NEAR MEDIAN
B - BELOW B - BELOW
THE FORECAST CLASSES REPRESENT AVERAGES FOR EACH STATE. NORMAL
VALUES - WHICH MAY VARY WIDELY ACROSS SOME STATES - ARE
AVAILABLE FROM YOUR LOCAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION SEE MESSAGE FXUS06 KWBC - ON AWIPS AS
PMDMRD.
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