McCook, Nebraska 7 Day Weather Forecast

Wx Forecast - Wx Discussion - Wx Aviation

956
FXUS63 KGLD 132003
AFDGLD

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Goodland KS
103 PM MST Tue Jan 13 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Widely scattered light showers and sprinkles tonight with
  minimal impacts.

- Breezy to windy on Thursday with elevated fire weather
  concerns.

- Very windy to possibly damaging wind gusts on Friday with
  explosive fire growth potential and dust storms possible.

&&

.SHORT TERM /THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT/...
Issued at 100 PM MST Tue Jan 13 2026

A shortwave trough embedded in the northwest flow will bring
widely scattered light showers/sprinkles to the area tonight.
QPF of a trace to a few hundredths will be possible with the low
levels very dry. The clouds will keep temperatures above
freezing and wintry precipitation is not expected. Lows will be
in the mid 30s. Wednesday will be mostly dry, though CAMs do
hint at some lingering light showers near the Palmer Divide in
the afternoon. Impacts would be minimal, if any at all, as QPF
remains around only a few hundredths. High temperatures will be
in the upper 40s and lows Wednesday night in the 20s.

Attention turns to the potential for more impactful weather
Thursday and Friday due to strong winds and low humidity. On
Thursday, will see a modest increase in winds with breezy
northwest winds gusting around 40-50 mph by the afternoon.
Relative humidity will fall into the upper teens, lowest in
Colorado and adjacent counties along the Colorado border to the
east. Currently looks to be just shy of critical fire weather
conditions, but it would not take much change in temperature or
dew points to push it into critical territory. Highs will be
around 60 and lows Thursday night in the 20s. Friday will be the
main day of concern. At 500 mb, a 110kt+ jet streak will be
accompanying a shortwave trough digging into the central plains.
As mixing deepens in the afternoon, some of those winds will mix
to the surface. NBM statistical output shows average gusts
Friday afternoon between 60-70 mph across the area, and peak
gusts of 70-90 mph. Strongest winds appear to favor western
areas from Colorado and west of Highway 25 in Kansas/Nebraska.
In addition to the possibility of damaging wind gusts, relative
humidity minimums in the teens will result in the potential for
explosive fire growth. Finally, blowing dust will likely be a
concern. Mixing heights are a bit high (around 2.5 km) which may
inhibit widespread dense blowing dust, though winds of that
magnitude will certainly be capable of producing localized
plumes of near zero visibility and extremely hazardous travel
conditions. Soils should be primed with little recent rain or
snow, except in southern areas which will have had a week or so
to melt and dry out. Winds will rapidly diminish after sunset
as the boundary layer decouples. High temperatures will be in
the lower 40s and lows Friday night in the teens.

&&

.LONG TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/...
Issued at 1257 PM MST Tue Jan 13 2026

Saturday, a broad upper trough continues to slide to the east, with
northwest flow over the Tri-State area. Temperatures will become a
little closer to seasonal, ranging from the low to mid-40s for
highs. Models still show a pretty tight pressure gradient over the
Tri-State area. Winds may still be on the breezy/windy side during
the daytime hours, out of the northwest around 15-25kts and gusts
reaching above 30kts, particularly in northeastern Colorado. Minimum
RH values will fall into the low to mid-20s. The lowest RH values
will be co-located with potentially the strongest winds/gusts, which
might cause some elevated fire weather concerns for northeastern
Colorado on Saturday. This will, however, be dependent on how
quickly the broad trough or low pushes east. Some models are still
pushing the narrative of a possible low over the Great Lakes on
Saturday.

Sunday, winds are expected to slacken off  slightly, remaining out
of the northwest. The strongest winds gusts may reach 35mph in
northeastern Colorado, co-located with RH values in the mid to upper
teens. Although not quite meeting RFW criteria and considering this
is still day five, this will be something to keep an eye on in the
coming days.

Sunday through the end of the forecast period, temperatures are
expected to return to the 50s for highs.

&&

.AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z WEDNESDAY/...
Issued at 1006 AM MST Tue Jan 13 2026

VFR expected to prevail at both KGLD and KMCK through the TAF
period. Widely scattered light showers tonight may occasionally
reduce ceilings to near or just above MVFR, but confidence is
low in these showers directly impacting either terminal.

&&

.GLD WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
KS...None.
CO...None.
NE...None.

&&

$$

SHORT TERM...024
LONG TERM...ANW
AVIATION...024