textproduct: Reno

KEY MESSAGES

* Gusty northeast to east ridge winds return tonight through Saturday night, with chilly breezes for western Nevada valleys. * Saturday will be the coldest day of the upcoming week, with hazardous wind chills near or below zero degrees for Sierra backcountry areas. * A slow warming trend will bring back the valley inversions next week, then by mid-late next week a weak weather system brings chances for light showers, mainly near the Sierra.

DISCUSSION

As the cut-off low swings to our south, a deepening trough will envelope the central U.S., which is our next main feature in the forecast. For today, we are in between these two features, with high clouds across southern Mono County on their way eastward. To our northeast, this retrograding frontal boundary may kick up a few snow showers across northern Nevada, as clouds fill skies over the Basin and Range. Breezy north to northeast winds will bring a colder air mass into view for tomorrow night into Saturday.

High temperatures Saturday will be around 5-10 degrees colder than today, and with the gusty north to northeast winds, will feel much colder. If your plans for Saturday involve getting out into Sierra backcountry, bring plenty of warm clothing to prevent frostbite or hypothermia. Saturday night the cold air will linger, before Sunday sees a bit of moderation in our high temperatures. The trough that dug south and brought the cold air via the polar front jet will meander east, and coupled with that long-gone cut- off low as a moisture source, will bring headaches to our friends back east, especially across the southeastern U.S.

Once the trough moves along, high pressure returns for next week, bringing back the light winds and valley inversions. This will usher in a gradual warming trend, with mostly dry days ahead. The only exception is a shortwave that will bring low chances for showers to northeastern California and some portions of northwestern Nevada Wednesday-Thursday. For now, chances range 10-20%, but amounts look light to nearly nothing, so showers may be more of a nuisance than causing accumulations. HRICH

AVIATION

* North to northeast winds today, with gusts to 25 kts across ridges near the Tahoe Basin. Besides patchy morning fog near KTRK, expect VFR conditions for all terminals today.

* Tonight, a band of low clouds may bring MVFR CIGS to Sierra terminals and mountain obscurations near western NV terminals. Wind gusts will also increase for western Nevada terminals tonight, with winds peaking Saturday. Northern to northeasterly gusts will approach 45-50 kts across Sierra ridges late Saturday into Sunday morning. Turbulence and LLWS may become issues late Saturday into Sunday, particularly along the western slopes of the Sierra. HRICH

REV Watches/Warnings/Advisories

NV...None. CA...None.