881 FXUS66 KPDT 302101 AFDPDT Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Pendleton OR 201 PM PDT Wed Mar 30 2022 .SHORT TERM... Tonight through Saturday....A trough and cold front continues to move across the region. The trough axis will pass over the area during the late afternoon and be east of Washington and Oregon tonight. The precip shield in the NAM seems to be overdone on the east side of the Cascades, mainly due to downsloping. The HRRR and RAP appear to be handling things better with more isolated precipitation. However, any precipitation will linger through the evening and overnight hours in the northwesterly flow before dissipating finally. Winds will remain breezy through the afternoon and into the evening, especially in the Kittitas Valley, Columbia Basin and Gorge and Blue Mountain Foothills due to the pressure gradient behind the frontal passage. These gradients are expected to relax later tonight and the winds will decrease. While conditions are marginal, will leave the wind advisory in place for the Kittitas Valley. Some of the strongest winds are currently occurring. Thursday into Friday look dry. First, in northwesterly flow, despite another short wave moving across the area on Thursday then in a building ridge Thursday night into early Friday. The ridge will flatten by later Friday. As the ridge flattens and the flow becomes more zonal, another potent shortwave and upper trough will move onshore Friday night into Saturday bringing another chance of mainly mountain precipitation. Snow levels look to be mainly in the 2500-3500 foot level in the Washington Cascades and 3500-4500 feet in the Blues. However, there is not a lot of moisture to work with and any snow amounts are expected to be light. High temperatures will continue to be below normal on Thursday...from near 50 degrees in central Oregon to around 60 in the Basin. By Friday and Saturday, highs will be above normal, from the lower 60s in central Oregon to the mid 60s in the Basin. Central Oregon will be a bit cooler on Saturday, while the Basin will be a few degrees warmer. Overnight lows will mainly be in the 20s and 30s tonight and Thursday night and in the 30s Friday night. .LONG TERM... Saturday night through Wednesday. A trough will be exiting the region Saturday night with a ridge moving through Sunday. Active weather returns late Sunday as strong trough is expected to move through Sunday night through Monday. There is still some uncertainty with the models and their ensembles but the main area of concern will be the Washington Cascades with snow potential Sunday night through Monday night and much of the lower elevation areas with high wind potential Monday and Tuesday as highlighted in the ECMWF EFI. Snow levels are expected to be 2500 to 3000 feet Monday along the Washington Cascades and 4500 to 5000 feet from central Oregon through the Blue Mountains. On Tuesday with the northwest flow, snow levels will be lower ranging from 2000-2500 feet across the region. Preliminary snow amounts from Sunday night through Tuesday range from 10-18 inches along the Washington Cascades and 8-12 inches for the Oregon Cascades and 3-6 inches for the Blue Mountains. This will need to be monitored for possible highlights as the track become more certain. On Wednesday, another ridge is expected with mainly dry conditions. Temperatures will around seasonal values through the period. 93 && .AVIATION...(Previous Discussion) 18Z TAFS...VFR conditions are expected through the period. Winds will be the primary concern. West winds 15-30 kt with some gusts at or slight above 35 kt today will slowly subside this evening. A few clouds at 050-090 today with bkn cirrus above. Clouds will tend to decrease tonight though may linger near the mtns. 93 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... PDT 35 54 32 60 / 0 0 0 0 ALW 39 59 35 63 / 0 0 0 0 PSC 37 60 35 64 / 0 0 0 0 YKM 32 60 31 62 / 0 0 0 0 HRI 35 59 32 64 / 0 0 0 0 ELN 33 55 31 58 / 0 0 0 0 RDM 23 51 24 62 / 0 0 0 0 LGD 33 52 27 57 / 0 0 0 0 GCD 30 48 27 61 / 0 0 0 0 DLS 39 60 37 64 / 0 0 0 0 && .PDT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OR...None. WA...Wind Advisory until 7 PM PDT this evening for WAZ026. && $$ SHORT TERM...77 LONG TERM....93 AVIATION...93