038 FXUS63 KTOP 041726 AFDTOP Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Topeka KS 1126 AM CST Thu Dec 4 2025 .KEY MESSAGES... - Cold today, with highs around or below freezing. - Milder temperatures Friday and Saturday, followed by another brief colder shot for Sunday into Monday. - Low chance of some light rain/snow Saturday night across northeast Kansas. && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 329 AM CST Thu Dec 4 2025 Surface high pressure is now centered over Iowa and is continuing to drop south. Skies are beginning to clear and winds are becoming light near the Nebraska border, which should help these spots drop into the single digits through sunrise. Farther south, cloud cover and winds have stayed just high enough that we should avoid breaking any records unless something changes quick. The surface ridge axis stays near the area today, keeping winds light and temperatures around or below freezing. Friday into Saturday, southerly winds become reestablished on the back side of the high, allowing max temperatures to rebound into the 40s. We'll still be a bit below average though, given continued northwest flow aloft with broad troughing over the eastern 2/3 of the CONUS. Within this northwest flow, we'll see a low- amplitude shortwave trough approach late Saturday, bringing an inverted surface trough across the area. While the GFS was a southern outlier yesterday, other guidance has trended a bit south over the past 24 hours. The most likely scenario remains for most of the precipitation to stay north across Nebraska and Iowa, but around 20- 30% of ensemble guidance now keeps the system far enough south to deliver some light rain/snow to northeast Kansas. So we'll continue to keep an eye on this, especially as this seems to our main chance for precipitation over the next week. Colder temperatures return behind this system for Sunday. Highs again stay around or below freezing, with Monday morning lows in the teens. Uncertainty increases by the middle of next week, but seems reasonable to expect a brief warmup Tue/Wed ahead of the next shortwave within the persistent northwesterly flow. && .AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z FRIDAY/... Issued at 1126 AM CST Thu Dec 4 2025 VFR conditions will continue with clear skies and light winds. Winds are in the process of switching towards the south as of forecast issuance, and should remain there through most of the period. A weak boundary will allow winds to turn more to the southwest at the very end of this period and beyond. && .CLIMATE... Updated at 331 AM CST Thu Dec 4 2025 Record Low Temperatures for Dec 4... Current Record Forecast Topeka 8, set in 1902 11 Concordia -2, set in 1886 11 && .TOP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... None. && $$ DISCUSSION...Reese AVIATION...Picha CLIMATE...Poage/Reese