Sitka, Alaska 7 Day Weather Forecast

Wx Forecast - Wx Discussion - Wx Aviation

734
FXAK67 PAJK 242310
AFDAJK

Southeast Alaska Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Juneau AK
310 PM AKDT Thu Apr 24 2025

.SHORT TERM...
Key Points:
 - Light to moderate rain showers continue for the panhandle
tonight before a break Friday night into Saturday.
 - Winds start to diminish tonight through Friday morning with
times of stronger wind gusts.
 - Winds diminish for the gulf and increase for N to S inside
waters as a low in the NE gulf moves over land.

Details: After the initial front moves over the panhandle light to
moderate rain showers continue before diminishing Friday evening.
Behind the cold front, snow levels have dropped just enough to see
snow near White Pass this evening and tonight as showers continue.
This snow will be limited to higher elevated areas along the
Klondike Highway.

Winds in the central panhandle will begin to lighten tonight after
the front moves past and the low moves over land. Various wind
directions will be observed across the panhandle as multiple systems
leave and then a new system moves into the area. For marine areas,
as the low in the NE gulf dissipates and moves over land, winds in
the gulf will diminish. There will be an increase in winds in north
to south facing channels tonight into tomorrow morning before
diminishing. This is due to the low tightening the pressure
gradient. Winds in Lynn Canal to Southern Chatham will increase to
moderate to fresh breezes tonight. These inner water winds will then
diminish Friday afternoon.

.LONG TERM.../Saturday through Thursday night/...This long range
forecast features continued wet weather beginning Sunday. Saturday
and Saturday night may provide for some dry weather, but not for
all locations at any one time. Overnight lows beginning Sunday
night remaining well enough above freezing that precip type will
most likely be rain vice snow even at White Pass. While the week
ahead is forecast to remain wet, no excessive rainfall totals are
expected in any timeframe that will result in hydrology concerns.

&&

.AVIATION...
A front overstretches the panhandle from south to north, slowly
pushing into the coastal panhandle through this afternoon with
rain and showers overspreading the area. Predominate MVFR flight
conditions will continue as front pushes inland, with CIGS AoB
3500ft and intermittent vsbys down to 4SM within the heaviest
showers. For the rest of this evening and into Friday morning,
expecting MVFR to low-end VFR conditions to continue as the parent
low associated with the aforementioned front dissipates as it
pushes into the NE Gulf Coast.

Winds will remain elevated through this evening, around 10 to
15kts with gusts up to 25kts possible, decreasing to around 10kts
or less through Thursday night, outside the usual suspects of
Haines and Skagway which will see continued elevated winds through
tonight. Winds increase again into Friday afternoon for the
northern panhandle, near 10 to 15kts with gusts around 25kts.

Not expecting widespread visibility issues, however, will need to
watch for periods of IFR flight category visibilities/CIGs for
southern and interior TAF sites into tonight due winds decreasing,
saturated low levels, and low cross over temperatures. Any fog
that does develop will quickly dissipate through Friday 18z.

&&

.MARINE...The low in the central gulf will continue to weaken as it
moves NE, set to lift inland along the NE gulf coast Friday morning.
Winds for the inner channels will see an increase tonight as the
north to south pressure gradient increases. Lynn Canal to southern
Chatham will see moderate to fresh breezes increasing tonight before
diminishing tomorrow morning into afternoon. Winds along the inner
waters will then remain around 10 kts through the weekend.

A trough that moves over the gulf of Alaska Friday night through
Saturday will increase winds for the gulf coast. The strongest winds
will be along the coast and the northern gulf. Then a stronger low
will them make its way into the southern gulf Sunday increasing
winds once again to fresh to strong breezes.

Most significant changes to the long range forecast
have to do with winds over the Gulf and Clarence Strait through
early Monday morning. A front already depicted in the forecast for
Saturday is now expected to be slightly stronger in terms of
wind, resulting in a marginal increase in winds from 20 to 25 kts.
The on Sunday, a low is now expected to enter the Gulf from the
south and approach the central outer coast by Monday afternoon.
This altered the wind field somewhat in terms of wind speed and
direction, with maximum winds along the central outer coast of 30
kts on Sunday night, spreading east into Clarence Strait in the
pre-dawn hours of Monday morning.

&&

.AJK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...None.
MARINE...Small Craft Advisory for PKZ643-644-651-652-662>664-671-672.

&&

$$

SHORT TERM...EAB
LONG TERM....Fritsch
AVIATION...NM
MARINE...EAB/Fritsch

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