Warmer, Drier Weather

SALINAS, Calif. (KION) – Warmer, drier weather continues into Tuesday as high pressure builds in. Temperatures rise about 8ºF over the area, an increase that will be felt for most inland areas. Onshore flow will moderate temperatures on the coast but some areas, especially on the north side of the bay, will be a few degrees warmer. We’ll cool back down on Wednesday as a short-wave trough slides in from the north. Deeper onshore flow ahead of it may get some drizzle going on the coast into Wednesday morning. Then, some weak instability may allow a few showers to develop over the inland mountains late in the day.  

Air Quality: Good  

Overnight: Low clouds slowly fill in on the coast and stretch into inland valleys. Patchy fog. Lows in the 40s for most areas.  
 
Tuesday: Low clouds retreat to the coast but linger on the south side of the bay during the day as slightly increased onshore flow will reinforce them. Warmer, with coastal highs ranging from upper 50s to low 70s—warmest on the north side of the bay—and low 70s to mid 80s inland. Breezy up valleys late in the day. Low clouds increase on the coast late with drizzle possible on the south/east sides of the bay.  
 
Wednesday: Widespread low clouds in the morning with patchy coastal drizzle. Partial clearing into the afternoon with cumulus buildup over the hills. There is a slight chance for a shower to develop over the Diablo Range and then drift west before dissipating. Cooler, with coastal highs in the upper 50s to mid-60s and mid-60s to around 80ºF inland. Windy up valleys late in the day.  
 
Extended: Instability lingers over the mountains on Thursday with the proximity of a cut-off upper level low. It may be enough for a few showers and perhaps a thunderstorm over the inland mountains. Dry and slightly cool conditions are expected on Friday before a deeper trough pushes in for the weekend. Rain is looking more and more likely with Saturday and Sunday looking at light to moderate rain chances. Northwest winds will pick up to and could be gusty at times.  

*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: 48ºF 
HIGH: 65ºF  

--INLAND CITIES--  
LOW: 44ºF 
HIGH: 73ºF  
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-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for May 6^th  – 12^th calls for the likelihood of near normal temperatures and ABOVE normal precipitation.  
- ENSO (El Niño/La Niña) STATUS: La Niña Advisory 
- ENSO Forecast: Neutral conditions expected by April and then to persist into summer 
-Area drought status: Abnormally dry for far southeastern Monterey County and eastern San Benito County. Drought-free for the remainder of the KION coverage area.  
-Monterey Bay Sea Surface Temperature as of April 28^th : 56.0ºF (avg. of 7 buoys) [Historic April Avg. SST: 55.1ºF]