FXUS65 KVEF 070531 AFDVEF Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 1031 PM PDT Sun Apr 6 2025 .SYNOPSIS...Temperatures across the region will return to normal today with the warming trend of the past few days continuing through the end of the work week. Dry conditions will also continue through the end of the week thanks to the ridge of high pressure building over the Western US. Winds will pick up across the western Mojave Desert and southern Great Basin on Monday with light winds returning on Tuesday and Wednesday. && .UPDATE...Tonight's weather features light winds, cool temperatures, and mostly clear skies aside from some passing high clouds. Lows will be near average for this time of year, which for Las Vegas means temperatures in the mid 50s. Tomorrow's high temperatures will be several degrees warmer compared to today's highs. No forecast updates are needed at this time. && .DISCUSSION...through next Sunday. Temperatures across the region will return to normal today, with afternoon high temperatures topping out around 5 to 10 degrees warmer than yesterday. This warming trend will continue through the end of the work week as an upper-level ridge builds over the Western US. A shortwave trough will move through the Pacific Northwest on Monday, flattening the ridge and bringing breezy westerly winds to the western Mojave Desert and eastern Sierra with breezy southerly winds across the southern Great Basin. Wind gusts in these areas will top out in the 25 mph to 35 mph range with isolated gusts up to 40 mph possible in areas of higher terrain. While this shortwave will flatten our upper-level ridge, it won't completely stop our warming trend, it will just slow it down from Monday to Tuesday. The upper-level ridge will begin rebuilding over the Western US on Tuesday and will continue to be the dominant synoptic feature across the west through the end of the work week. This will allow for our warming trend to continue through Friday with temperatures reaching 10 to 15 degrees above normal by mid-week and 15 to 20 degrees above normal by Friday. These hotter than normal temperatures will yield Minor HeatRisk (Level 1 of 4) across most of our forecast area by mid-week with Moderate HeatRisk (Level 2 of 4) in Death Valley and the Colorado River Valley. Moderate HeatRisk will affect those without adequate access to cooling or hydration as well as those who have not had the chance to acclimate to these temperatures. As such, make sure you stay hydrated and protect yourself from the sun if you have outdoor plans during the second half of the week. Forecast confidence decreases as we head into the weekend due to interensemble variability regarding the timing and the strength of an incoming system. Majority of the ECMWF members favor a solution with a weaker shortwave trough quickly moving through the Pacific Northwest over the weekend, whereas majority of the GFS ensemble members favor a solution with a deeper trough slowly moving through the area over the weekend. Given these differences in system strength and speed, it isn't surprising that the ECMWF mean solution has lighter winds and warmer temperatures over the weekend whereas the GFS mean favors cooler temperatures and stronger winds. Regardless of which of these solutions ends up panning out, we can still expect breezier conditions over the weekend with decreasing temperatures. && .AVIATION...For Harry Reid...For the 06Z Forecast Package... Expect light and diurnal winds through Monday morning before gusty southwest winds pick up across the Las Vegas Valley with gust speeds between 15 and 20 kts. Gust speed and frequency will decrease after sunset. FEW aoa 25 kft through the TAF period. For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast California...For the 06Z Forecast Package... Gusty southwest winds pick up across the region Monday afternoon with gust speeds between 15 and 25 kts. KBIH will favor a west-northwesterly direction, while KIFP and KEED vary between 160 and 240 (true). Gust speed and frequency will decrease after sunset. KDAG will favor the west with gust speeds approaching 30 kts through the afternoon and evening. FEW aoa 25 kft through the TAF period. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating procedures. && $$ UPDATE...Meltzer DISCUSSION...Stessman AVIATION...Soulat For more forecast information...see us on our webpage: https://weather.gov/lasvegas or follow us on Facebook and Twitter