textproduct: North Platte

KEY MESSAGES

- After tonight's rain chance, hot weather sets in again for the weekend. Sunday could be excessively hot.

- A bit cooler again next week with highs back into the 90s and an increasing chances for showers and thunderstorms.

SHORT TERM /THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT/

Issued at 212 PM CDT Thu Jul 23 2026

ECMWF ENS PWATS remain impressive with around 1.6" area wide. This is well above the the 90th %tile as sub-tropical moisture continues to moving northward through the Rockies and then turning eastward across the Plains on the northern side of the Southern Plains centered upper-level high pressure. One more disturbance will translate eastward this evening bringing another round of potential precipitation to the area. However, precipitation looks to be more scattered, and not expecting much coverage. The exception will be across portions of north central Nebraska, generally east of Highway 183, where coverage could be a little greater. After tonight, the center of the ridge begins to build back northward, essentially putting and end to rain chances. This will allow temperatures to be to warm again Friday, with highs in the upper 80s to mid 90s.

LONG TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/

Issued at 212 PM CDT Thu Jul 23 2026

The upper level ridging continues to build northward from the Southern Plains this weekend. This will bring a return to hot temperatures. Sunday looks to have the potential to be exceptionally hot. LREF/Ensemble mean high temperatures are well over 100 degrees and excessive heat headlines may be needed. Monday continues to look hot, but by Tuesday through Thursday, the ridge sinks back across the Southern Plains. This will allow for a return of several disturbances rotating around the high. Moisture content will remain high as sub-tropical moisture continues rotate north and then eastward across the region. This will likely lead to an increase in showers and thunderstorms. With the increased cloud cover, slightly cooler temperatures are expected with highs settling back into the lower to mid 90s.

AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z FRIDAY/

Issued at 1258 PM CDT Thu Jul 23 2026

MVFR ceilings are lifting across the area and VFR should prevail this afternoon. Scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected again this evening. Otherwise MVFR and local IFR will develop again tonight across central into southwest Nebraska.

LBF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

None.