On The Dry Slice Of Bread

WEATHER STORY

Expect warm & dry weather to continue for a while. We’ll be on the edge of the monsoon moisture plume but it won’t be deep enough to have any effect on us. The largest influences on our day to day weather will be the strength of the ridge to our west (warm) and the dryer southwesterly flow aloft (dry & sunny). The only changes coming will be the potential for a little tropical moisture to mix in with the monsoon and possibly move farther west this weekend which could bring high clouds, but I’m still not seeing any rain. The strengthening ridge will also likely warm our inland areas while at the coast may stabilize the marine layer a bit meaning slightly cooler, cloudier conditions.

AIR QUALITY: GOOD

Wednesday: Sunny and slightly warmer with coastal highs in the upper 60s to low 80s—warmest on the north side of the bay—and upper 70s to upper 90s inland. Breezy near the river mouths and then becoming windy for inland valleys in the afternoon and evening.

Overnight: Mostly clear with a few low clouds redeveloping around the bay and major inland valleys. Expect lows in the 50s for most areas with 60s in eastern San Benito County.

Thursday: Another day with only a few low clouds in the morning and plentiful afternoon sunshine. Expect coastal highs in the mid 60s to around 80ºF—warmest on the north side of the bay—and upper 70s to low 100s inland. Becoming windy for inland valleys in the afternoon and evening.

Extended: More warm & dry weather expected through the end of the week. It’s possible we’ll see a bit of an uptick in coastal low clouds this weekend, but certainly no “fogust”. Inland areas will heat slowly with highs peaking about 8ºF above normal on Saturday.

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This week's normal temperatures:
--COASTAL CITIES--
LOW: 55ºF
HIGH: 70ºF

--INLAND CITIES--
LOW: 53ºF
HIGH: 86ºF

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-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for August 17^th – 23^rd calls for the likelihood of ABOVE normal temperatures and near normal* precipitation.

*Note: Little to no precipitation typically falls this time of year.
- El Niño/La Niña STATUS: La Niña Advisory
- Forecast: Weak La Niña into the Fall

-Area drought status: “Severe Drought” for most of the viewing area with “Extreme Drought” in southern San Benito and southeastern Monterey Counties. The southeastern third of San Benito County has been upgraded to “Exceptional Drought”