textproduct: Western and Central Wyoming

KEY MESSAGES

- Dry and warmer conditions are expected Thursday through Saturday with mostly clear to partly cloudy skies. Southwest winds will become stronger and gusty (15-25 mph) Friday and Saturday with a cold front pushing through and stalling by Saturday morning.

- Sunday will see increasing clouds with isolated showers over the northwest WY mountains. Winds will remain breezy from the southwest in the afternoon and evening.

- A storm system is expected to move through western and central WY late Sunday through early Tuesday, bringing precipitation to much of the area along with cooler temperatures in the 50s and 60s to start out the week. Warmer and drier weather then moves in during the middle of next week.

DISCUSSION

Issued at 100 AM MDT Thu Sep 24 2026

IR currently depicts mainly clear skies across the CWA with a low well to the southeast over the Kansas high plains spinning some high clouds into southeastern portions of the state. A deepening trough off the western Canadian coast is extending south towards the Pacific northwest dropping the main finger of the PFJ southward as seen on WV. This will bring a series of shortwaves across the CWA by Saturday morning when a cold front pushes in and stalls, remaining until pushes through by Sunday night.

Before that, expect a tranquil Thursday in regards to sunny skies, relatively light winds, and dry conditions. Temperatures will be a bit warmer than Wednesday, extending a slight warming trend into Friday as well. Stronger winds Friday afternoon ahead of the aforementioned cold front, strengthening the pressure gradient through much of the CWA and especially for points across the wind corridor and higher elevations. Nothing extraordinary, but gusts up to 25 to 30 mph can be had Friday and extending into Saturday. In terms of the cold front, more seasonable temperatures Saturday and Sunday as it stalls about halfway through the CWA, dependent on what model one looks at as there is not much agreement on where it does and how far it pushes eastward. Regardless, a mid level trough to the southeast is trending further away from the CWA, keeping any precipitation Friday night and Saturday out of the area into southeastern parts of the state and into Colorado and the high plains.

The main trough will extend through the CWA by late Sunday and into early next week as the PFJ dips into Montana brining precipitation chances to the northwest and northern mountains Sunday night and becoming more widespread for Monday onward. The EC is trending to a closed low over California by Monday and into Tuesday that will slowly push eastward to the south of the state that will bring the more moisture rich, southwest flow for the CWA. This is more conducive for precipitation chances to increase for the much of the area, especially east of the Divide that tends to be blocked with more of a westerly flow. Models push this low/trough far enough east by Thursday with weak positively tilted ridging to build in from the southwest by week's end to dry things out. Time will tell on which model handles this low better, even with the EC being better long term, it still tends to be slower than its output. Stay tuned for updated forecasts in the coming days.

AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z FRIDAY/

Issued at 943 PM MDT Wed Sep 23 2026

Prevailing VFR conditions persist through the TAF period. Wind will remain below 10 knots as well. Skies will remain clear through Thursday morning with increasing high clouds pushing in from the southeast Thursday afternoon into Thursday evening.

Please see the Aviation Weather Center and/or CWSU ZDV and ZLC for the latest information on icing and turbulence forecasts.

RIW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

None.