textproduct: Omaha/Valley

KEY MESSAGES

- Warmer today with highs in the low 40s east of the Missouri River, and mid to upper 40s west. A few spots along our far west could hit 50F.

- Warm temperatures continue Wednesday with breezy winds, followed by a brief cool down in the 30s for Thursday and Friday.

- Dry conditions continue for the extended forecast period.

LONG TERM

/THURSDAY THROUGH MONDAY/

The western CONUS H5 ridge will deamplify somewhat on Thursday as a strong shortwave off the coast of southwest California tracks northeast. A few waves are seen ejecting from the eastern periphery of the ridge near the Rockies. However, model guidance keeps these disturbances well away from the area. Sfc ridging moves over portions of the Northern Plains too, helping suppress any PoP chances for Thursday and Friday. Behind Wednesday's front, highs Thursday and Friday cool to the 30s.

This "cool down" will be short lived though as strong H8 warm air advection moves over a large portion of the Northern and Central Plains by the weekend and into early next week. Highs Saturday warm to the 40s for most locations, with widespread 50s across eastern Nebraska by Sunday. The warmth continues through at least Monday. Deterministic and ensemble guidance is also in fairly good agreement that dry weather prevails for the duration of the long term period.

AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z THURSDAY/

Issued at 517 PM CST Tue Dec 30 2025

IR satellite and surface observations as of 5 PM (23z) indicate a a shield of MVFR clouds (FL019-025) present over eastern SD and southwest MN, slowly drifting south. Ensemble data suggest that the western edge of the more continuous ceilings are most likely to remain in western IA. However, some deterministic guidance indicates the MVFR ceilings affecting KOFK and KOMA after 03 or 04z. Prevailing VFR conditions will be maintained for those locations in this forecast update, and observational trends will continue to be monitored for potential amendments. There is also some model signal for patchy fog development in the 12-15z timeframe in the KOMA vicinity. Otherwise, northwest winds at less than 12 kt are expected overnight. Winds switch to west or southwest Wednesday morning before switching back to northwest by mid/late afternoon. Latest LLWS forecasts are lower than previously indicated, so that mention has been removed in this update.

OAX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

NE...None. IA...None.