Christmas Rain

Changes are brewing! High pressure loses its grip on the Central Coast, allowing for increasing clouds and gusty southerly winds as the next weather maker arrives overnight and into Saturday morning.  Expect more clouds around, cooler temps and rain chances for Saturday that will linger into Sunday. Christmas week will bring a series of rain events with a stronger system set for Christmas Eve day and again after the Christmas holiday. Bring out the warm jackets and rain gear! Stay tuned for all the details.

AIR QUALITY: Good to Moderate

Overnight: Partly to mostly cloudy, with patchy fog early in low lying areas. Drizzle/ chance of light rain possible. Occasional gusts out of the south after midnight. Mild lows with temperatures from the mid 40s to low 50s.

**HIGH SURF ADVISORY**
… in effect from Saturday 6AM to Sunday 4PM for the entire coast of Santa Cruz and Monterey counties, including the Monterey Bay.

*A moderate to long period west to northwest swell will result in an increasing risk of sneaker waves and rip currents. Sneaker waves breaking between 10 and 13 feet. For the High Surf Advisory, expect large west swell with breaking waves 15 to 18 feet, including breakers near 20 feet are possible.

*Sneaker waves can sweep across the beach without warning, pulling people into the sea from rocks, jetties, and beaches. Inexperienced swimmers should remain out of the water due to dangerous surf conditions. Sudden immersion in cold water can result in cold water shock even for the most experienced swimmers. Cold water shock can result in dramatic changes in breathing, heart rate and blood pressure, greatly increasing the risk of drowning in rough open waters.

*Remain out of the water to avoid hazardous swimming conditions.

Saturday: Light rain showers across the Central Coast with higher precipitation amounts for coastal and northern locations. Partly to mostly cloudy skies. Occasional gusts possible throughout the day. Highs will remain in the 60s.

Sunday: Cloudy with fog and more rain chances with some clearing later in the day. Highs in the upper 50s to upper 60s.

Extended: We’ll be clipped by two more systems (to the north) in the Sun/Mon timeframe before a stronger system arrives on Tuesday (Christmas Eve). That one is looking rather stormy with wind, rain, and perhaps some thunderstorms. Cooler air will also follow into Christmas Day.

*Note: Any alerts from the National Weather Service in Monterey will be noted in italics above. Alerts may be edited for brevity or local clarification

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This week's normal temperatures:
--COASTAL CITIES--
LOW: 42ºF
HIGH: 59ºF

--INLAND CITIES--
LOW: 37ºF
HIGH: 60ºF
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-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for December 27^th – January 2^nd calls for the likelihood of ABOVE normal temperatures and ABOVE normal precipitation.

- ENSO (El Niño/La Niña) STATUS: La Niña Watch
- ENSO Forecast: Transition to La Niña into the fall and persist through the winter months.
- Area drought status: Abnormally dry for San Benito County, northeastern Monterey County and eastern Santa Clara County. Drought-free elsewhere
- Monterey Bay Sea Surface Temperature as of December 18^th : 55.3ºF (avg of 7 buoys) [December Average: 55.0ºF]