textproduct: Salt Lake City

KEY MESSAGES, Issued 1029 PM MDT Tue Aug 4 2026

- An influx of smoke originating from numerous fires across the Pacific Northwest will continue through at least Thursday.

- A gradual warming trend through the latter half of the week brings the potential for widespread dangerous heat to develop Friday into Saturday.

- Chances for afternoon showers and thunderstorms with microburst potential begin as early as Thursday across southwest Utah, with the threat becoming more widespread early next week as monsoon moisture surges northward.

DISCUSSION, Issued 1029 PM MDT Tue Aug 4 2026

Utah and southwest Wyoming are under a dry west to northwest flow this evening as high pressure rebuilds along the Pacific coast. High temperatures stayed up to 5F below seasonal normals over northern portions of the area, while temperatures stayed abnormally hot over southern Utah. A high of 99F at Cedar City tied the record high for the date, with some possibility that other daily records were broken.

The ridge will continue to build over the next few days, slowly shifting east as it does so. By Friday, the ridge is expected to be overhead, and highs up to 10F above seasonal normals will be common for both Friday and Saturday, bringing the potential of an increase in heat related illness.

The position of the ridge is expected to allow a subtle intrusion of monsoon moisture into southern Utah, potentially as early as Thursday. This moisture will allow for the development of a few high based showers and thunderstorms, primarily focused over the higher terrain of southern Utah. Any storms that develop will be capable of producing gusty and erratic downburst winds.

By Sunday into Monday, there is good agreement in guidance that the ridge axis will shift east of the area, becoming centered over the Four Corners. This positioning of the ridge is a typical scenario for a larger surge of monsoon moisture across the forecast area. Thus, there will be decreasing temperatures and increase in the potential for precipitation, with the primary threat over the area, particularly southern Utah, shifting toward flash flooding for at least the first part of the upcoming week.

AVIATION

KSLC...Currently, some wildfire smoke has impacted terminals nearby resulting in MVFR vsbys. This is forecast to improve by 13-14z with VFR conditions prevailing for the remainder of the TAF period. Diurnal wind shifts are expected throughout the TAF period.

REST OF UTAH AND SOUTHWEST WYOMING...Wildfire smoke has impacted a few terminals across northern UT and southwest WY, though this should improve by around 13-14z. Otherwise, VFR conditions with diurnal winds will prevail through the TAF period.

FIRE WEATHER, Issued 454 AM MDT Wed Aug 5 2026

Temperatures will continue to increase with conditions becoming increasingly dry as high pressure continues to strengthen overhead. Additionally, this will continue to yield poor overnight recoveries across portions of northern, central, and southeast UT through at least Saturday. A monsoonal push looks to slowly develop starting tomorrow resulting in scattered showers and thunderstorms across southern UT. The monsoonal moisture looks to push further north come Sunday, potentially bringing rainfall to central and northern UT to start off the week. This will also help improve overnight recoveries as well as moderate daytime high temperatures given increasing cloud cover.

SLC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

UT...None. WY...None.