Cooling Off
New record highs Wednesday include Salinas with 88 degrees (old record 87 in 1943) and Watsonville with 92 (old record 87 in 2007). Temperatures will be noticeably cooler Thursday and into the holiday weekend as a trough moves south from the north. Our winds will be more onshore which will help bring in the cooler air. Coastal clouds and patchy fog will fill in by Thursday morning as well with afternoon sunshine. Smoke from wildfires up north will still affect the central coast but the shift in winds will help to push any haze and smoke out of the area by the weekend. Temperatures will likely be below normal by Thursday/Friday for most areas and it’s possible we may see some coastal drizzle Friday & Saturday mornings. We’ll then warm slightly through Labor Day as a ridge to our southwest strengthens.
AIR QUALITY: Good to Moderate
Overnight: Skies will remain clear for most of the night, but low clouds will start to develop after midnight. Partly to mostly cloudy conditions are expected by morning near the coast and parts of the Salinas Valley. Lows will be a bit warmer, 50s to low 60s. Mountainous locations in the 60s to 70s.
Thursday: Cooler with lingering low clouds on the coast. Highs in the 60s to 70s for coastal cities, 70s to low 90s inland. Breezy northwesterly onshore winds on the exposed coast becoming stronger for the valleys late in the day. Cooler at night inland and in the mountains.
Friday: Patchy am fog and clouds than gradual clearing with afternoon sunshine again. Staying cool with breezy northwesterly onshore winds continuing.
Extended: Friday and Saturday will remain slightly cool with partly cloudy skies and possible morning drizzle. We’ll warm back up a bit into Labor Day.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
This week's normal temperatures:
--COASTAL CITIES--
LOW: 55ºF
HIGH: 70ºF
--INLAND CITIES--
LOW: 52ºF
HIGH: 86ºF
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for September 6th – 12th calls for the likelihood of near normal temperatures and near normal precipitation. Note: Little to no precipitation typically falls this time of year.
- ENSO (El Niño/La Niña) STATUS: El Niño Advisory
- Forecast: Moderate to strong El Niño expected this winter.
-Area drought status: Currently drought-free
