Weather alerts for the NWS North Platte NE forecast area

000
FXUS63 KLBF 281156
AFDLBF

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service North Platte NE
656 AM CDT Wed Oct 28 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Widespread dense fog will continue into this morning with a
  dense fog advisory in effect until 10 AM MDT/11 AM CDT.

- Scattered showers are possible Friday afternoon into Friday
  night, with the greatest precipitation chances currently
  favoring central and eastern Nebraska. Mainly dry conditions
  are expected Saturday, with highs in the upper 50s to middle
  60s through the weekend.

- A stronger storm system may impact the region early to middle
  next week, bringing increasing chances for more widespread
  rainfall and cooler temperatures. Considerable uncertainty
  remains regarding the timing and track of this system.

&&

.SHORT TERM /THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/...
Issued at 201 AM CDT Wed Oct 28 2026

Today and Tonight...The main concern will be widespread fog through 
mid morning. The 00Z LBF sounding showed saturation up to H85 with 
much drier air aloft. This will be favorable for dense fog across 
southwest and central NE, north to near highways 2 and 91. A 
prefrontal surface trough will move east this morning, followed by a 
weak cold frontal passage late morning into this afternoon. This 
will end fog from west to east starting near daybreak with morning 
stratus clearing out late morning into early afternoon. Highs today 
remain near the previous forecast from the mid 60s northwest 
Sandhills to upper 60s and lower 70s elsewhere. Surface high 
pressure will move into eastern NE tonight. Winds will be light and 
variable, except becoming light southeast across the northwest 
Sandhills. Could see stratus and fog returning to the panhandle and 
far southwest Nebraska after midnight. Lows will be cooler in the 
mid to upper 30s. 

Thursday and Thursday night...Stratus may persist across northwest 
Kansas and far southwest NE into Thursday afternoon, and lowered 
highs a few degrees across far southwest Nebraska. Highs should
be rather uniform from 62 to 66 degrees across the forecast 
area as winds return to the south to southeast at 5 to 15 mph in
the afternoon, with gusts to 20 mph across the northwest 
Sandhills. A warm front is forecast to develop across west 
central into north central KS in the afternoon, where showers 
and a few thunderstorms may develop. The warm front will lift 
northeast Thursday night, with a slight chance for showers 
across far southeastern areas. Synoptically, a closed low will 
persist of the coast of the Pacific Northwest as the main upper 
trough persists along the West Coast. This will bring an 
increase in southwesterly flow aloft to the region as a 
shortwave trough moves through New Mexico and west Texas. As a 
result, skies will become mostly cloudy with lows from the upper
30s to mid 40s.

&&

.LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/...
Issued at 201 AM CDT Wed Oct 28 2026

Friday, a longwave trough will remain established across the western 
United States as a negative PNA pattern persists. Downstream of this 
trough, upper-level ridging will continue to amplify across the 
central United States, resulting in height rises across the region. 
During the day Friday, model guidance continues to indicate a weak 
lead shortwave disturbance moving through the southwesterly flow 
ahead of the main trough. Increasing warm air advection (WAA) within 
the lower to middle levels, along with strengthening southerly flow, 
will support continued moisture transport into the central Plains. 
This disturbance will also have increasing moisture to work with, 
given the Pacific moisture associated with the approaching system 
and surface dewpoints expected to reach the lower to middle 50s 
across portions of the region. With increasing forcing for ascent 
associated with the lead shortwave, scattered precipitation chances 
remain possible Friday afternoon into Friday night. However, 
uncertainty remains regarding the coverage and intensity of 
precipitation, with the GFS continuing to be the more aggressive 
solution. In contrast, the ECMWF remains less aggressive, favoring 
the better precipitation chances farther east across central and 
eastern Nebraska. Given these differences, confidence in widespread 
precipitation remains low, and trends will continue to be monitored 
over the next several forecast cycles. Highs Friday should remain in 
the upper 50s to lower 60s, with overnight lows generally in the 
upper 30s to lower 40s.

Saturday, upper-level ridging will remain established across the 
northern Plains as the western longwave trough gradually begins 
progressing eastward, resulting in strengthening southwesterly flow 
aloft across the region. Low-level moisture transport will also 
continue, with PWAT values approaching 200 percent of normal across 
portions of the area. Given the anomalously moist air mass and 
continued moisture advection, considerable low-level cloud cover may 
develop and persist through portions of the day Saturday. Despite 
the increased moisture, precipitation chances should remain low as 
stronger forcing for ascent remains displaced west of the forecast 
area. Highs Saturday should reach the lower to middle 60s, with 
overnight lows generally in the lower to middle 40s as the increased 
moisture and cloud cover limit radiational cooling.

Sunday into the middle of next week, attention turns toward the 
western trough as it begins progressing eastward and potentially 
develops into a closed upper-level low across the Four Corners 
region by Sunday afternoon or evening. By Monday, model guidance 
generally supports this system beginning to eject eastward into the 
central United States, resulting in increasing southwesterly flow 
aloft and stronger synoptic-scale forcing for ascent across the 
central Plains. With anomalous moisture remaining in place ahead of 
the approaching system, precipitation chances are expected to 
increase, with the potential for more widespread rainfall across the 
region early next week. However, considerable uncertainty remains 
regarding the evolution, timing, and eventual track of this system. 
Both the GEFS and EPS generally support increasing precipitation 
chances across the region Monday, though differences remain 
regarding the placement of the strongest forcing for ascent and the 
axis of greatest precipitation. One additional source of uncertainty 
is the potential for a stronger northern-stream trough to interact 
with the southern-stream system. Some guidance has begun to suggest 
a more amplified northern-stream disturbance, which could influence 
the timing and track of the southern-stream trough and potentially 
result in a more progressive system. Depending on how these features 
interact, the corridor of greatest moisture transport and 
precipitation could shift farther south and east of the forecast 
area. Given the system remains several days away, additional changes 
in model guidance are expected. Nevertheless, confidence is 
gradually increasing in a more active weather pattern early to 
middle next week, with the potential for a stronger storm system to 
affect the central Plains. Trends will continue to be monitored as 
model guidance begins to converge on a more consistent solution. 
Temperatures should gradually cool into the 50s by early to middle 
next week as the storm system approaches and precipitation chances 
increase. However, temperatures are expected to remain relatively 
mild for this time of year, as the overall pattern does not 
currently favor a significant intrusion of colder air into the 
region.

&&

.AVIATION /12Z TAFS THROUGH 12Z THURSDAY/...
Issued at 654 AM CDT Wed Oct 28 2026

Expect gradual improvements to aviation weather in the next few
hours for western and central Nebraska terminals.

Widespread IFR and LIFR conditions continue but CIGs are slowly
improving while visibility has largely climbed above 1SM
already. By mid to late morning, do anticipate a return to VFR
conditions with gusty northwest winds around 20 to 25 knots.
Late tonight, another threat of fog should develop across at
least portions of the region, however, greatest concern should
remain west of KLBF and KVTN.

&&

.LBF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
Dense Fog Advisory until 11 AM CDT /10 AM MDT/ this morning 
for NEZ022>029-035>038-056>059-069>071.

&&

$$

SHORT TERM...Roberg
LONG TERM...Labenz
AVIATION...NMJ