Straits of Florida from Craig Key to West End of Seven Mile Bridge out 20 - 60 NM Marine Forecast
| This Afternoon...Northeast To East Winds Near 10 Knots, Becoming North To Northeast 5 To 10 Knots. Seas 3 To 4 Feet, Occasionally To 5 Feet, Subsiding To 2 To 3 Feet. Wave Detail: Northeast To East 3 Feet At 5 Seconds And West To Northwest 2 Feet At 8 Seconds. Isolated Showers. |
| Tonight...Northeast Winds Near 10 Knots, Decreasing To 5 To 10 Knots. Seas 2 To 3 Feet, Subsiding To 1 To 2 Feet. Wave Detail: Northeast To East 2 Feet At 5 Seconds And West To Northwest 1 Foot At 7 Seconds. Isolated Showers. |
| Sunday...North To Northeast Winds 5 To 10 Knots, Becoming Northwest To North 20 To 25 Knots In The Afternoon. Seas 1 To 2 Feet, Building To 3 To 5 Feet, Occasionally To 6 Feet. Wave Detail: Northeast 2 Feet At 4 Seconds, Becoming North To Northeast 3 Feet At 4 Seconds. Scattered Showers. |
| Sunday Night...Northwest To North Winds 20 To 25 Knots, Becoming North. Seas 5 To 8 Feet, Occasionally To 10 Feet. Isolated Showers. |
| Monday...North Winds 20 To 25 Knots, Becoming North To Northeast. Seas 5 To 8 Feet, Occasionally To 10 Feet. Isolated Showers. |
| Monday Night...North To Northeast Winds Near 20 Knots. Seas 5 To 7 Feet, Occasionally To 9 Feet. Isolated Showers. |
| Tuesday...North To Northeast Winds 20 To 25 Knots, Increasing To Near 25 Knots. Seas 5 To 8 Feet, Occasionally To 10 Feet. Isolated Showers. |
| Tuesday Night...Northeast Winds Near 25 Knots. Seas 7 To 10 Feet, Occasionally To 13 Feet. Isolated Showers. |
| Wednesday...Northeast To East Winds Near 25 Knots. Seas 7 To 10 Feet, Occasionally To 13 Feet. Isolated Showers. |
| Wednesday Night...Northeast To East Winds 20 To 25 Knots, Becoming East Near 20 Knots. Seas 6 To 9 Feet, Occasionally To 11 Feet. Scattered Showers. |
| Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Key West FL 1002am EST Sat Jan 17 2026 Issued at 1000am EST Sat Jan 17 2026 Weather conditions were somewhat messy this morning across the Florida Keys. A glance at GOES-East satellite imagery reveals a mess of cloud cover across the CWA. Shallow cumulus to stratus are dispersed across the nearby waters. KBYX radar observations highligheights fast moving shallow showers, though derived rain rates suggests a trace to a hundredth of an inch of rainfall may be observed at a few island sites. Breezes along the reef are gentle to moderate early this morning. Temperatures are slowly rising back into the 70s across the Keys as well. Despite the amount of cloud cover and an increase in moisture, the morning KKEY sounding indicates a very pronounced inversion at 6000 feet. Low to mid level cloud cover will persist throughout the morning thanks to veering winds through the lowest three to four thousand feet. Overall, not expecting anything other than minor changes to the forecast. .PREVIOUS Issued at 428am EST Sat Jan 17 2026 CIMSS products shows a deep upper level mean layer trough across the eastern United States early this morning. To its south, upper level ridging is trying to nudge its way northwestward which is helping to resharpen the trough that is already in place. Deep mean layer ridging continues west of this trough across the West Coast with the ridge nudging north into western Canada. The pattern across much of North America remains highly amplified (meridional). At the surface, high pressure remains over the western North Atlantic with the southwestern side of this ridge nudging through Florida and into the eastern Gulf. This is leading to marine observations platforms surrounding the Island Chain observing northeast to east breezes of 10 to 15 knots. GOES 19 Total Precipitable Water (TPW) looks very different again compared to 24 hours ago. Moisture is beginning to increase in earnest across the area early this morning with estimated PWAT (Precipitable Water) values ranging from 0.6 inches to 0.9 inches throughout the Keys. Since the air is still relatively dry, KBYX radar is not detecting any shower activity. GOES 19 Nighttime Microphysics imagery shows mainly mid level clouds across the Keys as this is where the moisture increase has been. Temperatures along the Island Chain are in the mid 60s with near 70 degrees in the far Upper Keys and dew points are in the mid to upper 50s. .FORECAST... High pressure will continue to loosen its grip across Florida as it continues moving farther out into the North Atlantic. This will result in the gradient continuing to weaken with the Keys ending up in a col region for tonight. A col region is usually when an area is in between the significant weather systems. This will lead to continued slackening breezes through early Sunday morning. Slight moisture return in the low to mid levels will run the risk for an isolated shower or sprinkle across the Island Chain today and tonight. Therefore, slight chances (10% today and 20% tonight) are forecast. Temperatures will rebound quite nicely today into the lower to mid 70s with dew points also continuing to climb. Numerical and global guidance is all on board for another strong cold front to press through the Keys sometime late Sunday/Sunday evening. This will result in another shot of cooler air, breezy to windy conditions, and a dip in humidity. Moisture is expected to continue increasing ahead of the front resulting in chances of showers for Sunday. In the wake of this front, a rather large high pressure system is expected to move across the eastern United States. This will keep the breezes elevated for much of the week. Moisture will remain scarce with most of the shower activity, if any, remaining across the Straits, at least initially. Once we approach mid week, the moisture is expected to creep northward bringing slight chances back into the forecast along the Island Chain. Temperatures and dew points will also slowly moderate through the week. Expect temperatures to be back to slightly above normal to above normal by late in the week. Marine Issued at 428am EST Sat Jan 17 2026 High pressure centered over the western North Atlantic will slowly loosen its grip across Florida this afternoon which will support rapidly slackening breezes. The next cold front is forecast to push through the Florida Keys coastal waters on Sunday or Sunday night. Fresh to strong (potentially near gale (SE Gulf)) northerly breezes are forecast in its wake for the early to the middle part of next week. An expansive high pressure system will then move across the eastern United States. This will continue to promote to fresh to strong breezes through the week. Climate On this day in Keys Weather History, in 1983, the daily record low temperature of 53F was recorded in Key West. Temperature records for Key West date back to 1872. NOAA Key West FL Office: Watches - Warnings - Advisories FL...None. GM...None. |
Key West FL Radar
Southeast Radar