857  
ACUS01 KWNS 081934  
SWODY1  
SPC AC 081932  
 
DAY 1 CONVECTIVE OUTLOOK  
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK  
0132 PM CST THU JAN 08 2026  
 
VALID 082000Z - 091200Z  
 
...THERE IS A MARGINAL RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS PORTIONS  
OF THE MISSOURI...MISSISSIPPI...AND OHIO RIVER VALLEYS...  
   
..SUMMARY  
 
AN ISOLATED RISK FOR DAMAGING GUSTS AND POSSIBLY A TORNADO WILL  
CONTINUE TONIGHT FROM THE OZARK PLATEAU EASTWARD INTO THE LOW/MID  
MISSISSIPPI AND LOWER OHIO VALLEYS.  
   
..20Z UPDATE  
 
THE SLIGHT RISK ACROSS EASTERN OKLAHOMA INTO SOUTHEAST KANSAS,  
WESTERN MISSOURI, AND WESTERN ARKANSAS WAS REMOVED WITH THIS UPDATE.  
THE MARGINAL RISK WAS ALSO TRIMMED BEHIND ONGOING CONVECTION. A  
BROKEN LINE OF STORMS CONTINUES EASTWARD FROM SOUTHERN MISSOURI INTO  
CENTRAL ARKANSAS BUT HAS SHOWN SIGNS OF WEAKENING AS IT HAS OUTRUN  
THE BETTER MOISTURE TO THE SOUTH. HI-RES GUIDANCE FROM THE HRRR AND  
RRFS SUGGEST REDEVELOPMENT OF STRONGER STORMS, AND PERHAPS A  
SUPERCELL OR TWO, WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS CENTRAL AND NORTHEASTERN  
ARKANSAS LATER THIS AFTERNOON.  
 
THERE ARE A FEW BREAKS IN THE CLOUD COVER ACROSS CENTRAL/SOUTHERN  
ARKANSAS THAT COULD ALLOW FOR POCKETS OF HEATING BY THE AFTERNOON,  
BUT OVERALL THERMAL PROFILES APPEAR MEAGER, THOUGH DEEP LAYER SHEAR  
WILL REMAIN STRONG. THIS LEADS TO SOME UNCERTAINTY IN MAINTENANCE OF  
ANY SUPERCELLS THAT DO DEVELOP AND AS SUCH, A MARGINAL WAS  
MAINTAINED TO SUPPORT SOME ISOLATED THREAT.  
 
ANOTHER LOCATION OF INTEREST FOR THE EVENING WILL BE ACROSS PORTIONS  
OF ILLINOIS, AS MENTIONED IN THE PREVIOUS OUTLOOK. ACROSS  
SOUTH-CENTRAL ILLINOIS SOME BETTER OVERLAP OF WEAK SURFACE-BASED  
INSTABILITY BENEATH THE LLJ MAY OCCUR LATER THIS EVENING. SEE  
PREVIOUS DISCUSSION BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION.  
 
..THORNTON.. 01/08/2026  
   
PREV DISCUSSION  
/ISSUED 1034 AM CST THU JAN 08 2026/  
   
..OZARK PLATEAU  
 
WATER-VAPOR IMAGERY LATE THIS MORNING SHOWS A POTENT, NEGATIVELY  
TILTED SHORTWAVE TROUGH AND ASSOCIATED SPEED MAX/DRY SLOT MOVING  
NORTHEAST ACROSS THE KS-OK BORDER. A BROAD MOIST CONVEYOR AHEAD OF  
THE UPPER DISTURBANCE IS CONTRIBUTING TO A PLUME OF 50S TO LOWER 60S  
DEWPOINTS FROM AR INTO MO AHEAD OF A NORTHEASTWARD-MIGRATING CYCLONE  
FORECAST TO MOVE FROM KS TO NORTHERN LOWER MI. A BROKEN BAND OF  
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS MORNING IS MOVING RAPIDLY NORTHEAST POSING  
PRIMARILY A SEVERE-WIND GUST RISK OVER WESTERN PARTS OF THE OZARK  
PLATEAU THROUGH THE MIDDAY HOURS. WEAKER BUOYANCY FARTHER EAST WILL  
BE PARTIALLY OFFSET BY A STRONG NORTHWARD FLUX OF LOW-LEVEL MOISTURE  
AS THE AIRMASS SLOWLY DESTABILIZES BENEATH AN EXTENSIVE CLOUD  
CANOPY. IT REMAINS UNCERTAIN WHETHER A FOCUSED AND MORE  
CONCENTRATED RISK FOR SEVERE WILL PERSIST INTO THE AFTERNOON ACROSS  
THE OZARKS. NONETHELESS, AN ESTABLISHED/MATURE CONVECTIVE BAND MAY  
CONTINUE TO YIELD WIND-DAMAGE POTENTIAL GIVEN THE STRONG KINEMATICS.  
   
..LOWER MO VALLEY INTO THE MID MS AND LOWER OH VALLEYS  
 
STRENGTHENING SOUTHERLY LOW-LEVEL FLOW AND THE INTENSIFICATION OF A  
LLJ (60-70 KT) WILL FAVOR A GRADUAL MOISTENING FROM SOUTH TO NORTH  
ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND INTO THE EVENING.  
FORECAST SOUNDINGS LATER TODAY INTO THIS EVENING SHOW ENLARGED  
HODOGRAPHS ACROSS PORTIONS OF IL WHERE MEAGER BUOYANCY IS EVENTUALLY  
FORECAST TO DEVELOP. CONSIDERED A SMALL SLIGHT-RISK BUT UNCERTAINTY  
IN BUOYANCY MAGNITUDE AND POSSIBLE CONVECTIVE LINE-PARALLEL SHEAR  
LOWERS CONFIDENCE FOR PERHAPS A MORE FOCUSED WIND HAZARD THIS  
EVENING. HOWEVER, HAVE ADJUSTED LOW-TORNADO PROBABILITIES FARTHER  
NORTH INTO CENTRAL IL TO THE SOUTHEAST OF THE EVOLVING CYCLONE WHERE  
WEAK SURFACE-BASED BUOYANCY MAY DEVELOP.  
   
..MID-SOUTH/LOWER MS VALLEY  
 
MUCH OF THE REGION WILL REMAIN FREE OF CONVECTION UNTIL AFTER 04Z  
WHEN INCREASING LOW-LEVEL CONFLUENCE MAY SUPPORT ISOLATED  
THUNDERSTORMS. BUOYANCY WILL BE MODEST, BUT VERTICAL SHEAR WILL BE  
STRONG ENOUGH TO SUPPORT THE POTENTIAL FOR A FEW DAMAGING GUSTS.  
   
..SOUTHERN AZ  
 
A SHORTWAVE TROUGH AND ASSOCIATED JET STREAK ARE FORECAST TO  
PROGRESS ACROSS AZ TODAY. SCANT LOW-LEVEL MOISTURE WILL BE IN PLACE  
AHEAD OF THIS WAVE BUT COOLING MID-LEVEL TEMPERATURES AND MODEST  
MID-LEVEL MOISTURE COULD STILL SUPPORT LIMITED BUOYANCY AND THE  
POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS. GIVEN THE ROBUST MID-LEVEL  
FLOW ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SYSTEM, A FEW STRONGER GUSTS ARE POSSIBLE.  
HOWEVER, OVERALL COVERAGE IS CURRENTLY EXPECTED TO REMAIN BELOW 5%.  
 
 
CLICK HERE TO GO TO PREVIOUS BULLETINS.
The Nexlab SPC Page
Main Text Page