Cold Morning, Slightly Warmer Afternoon
A chilly, frosty start to your Thursday, as the system that brought the Central Coast wild winter weather earlier this week, leaves behind a cold, dry airmass. Temperatures will warm slightly Thursday and Friday but will remain below normal for this time of year. The sunny, dry weather will only be a brief break over the next couple of days, as unsettled weather returns Saturday with showers possible into early next week.
AIR QUALITY: Good to Moderate
Thursday: Slightly warmer afternoon highs, with highs in the 50s with mostly sunny skies.
Overnight: A few low clouds near the coast, filling into the valleys by sunrise making for partly cloudy conditions. While further inland it will remain mostly clear. Lows will be slightly warmer, with 40s returning to the coast, and mainly 30s inland. Few valley spots could once again dip into the upper 20s.
Friday: Low clouds will gradually clear, to mostly sunny skies by lunchtime. A couple of low clouds could linger near the immediate coast. Highs, a touch warmer, with mid to upper 50s. Few low 60s inland.
Extended: A weak cold front sitting to our north will dip south into the state this weekend. Ahead of it, clouds will be on the increase late Friday into the early part of Saturday. The system will be somewhat slow moving bringing with it a chance of light to moderate rain. Another shortwave comes through Sunday with a better chance of moderate to locally heavy rain. Though snow is less likely compared to that of the last system, the higher peaks in our area could pick up another inch, give or take. Stay tuned to the forecast.
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This week's normal temperatures:
--COASTAL CITIES--
LOW: 45ºF
HIGH: 63ºF
--INLAND CITIES--
LOW: 41ºF
HIGH: 65ºF
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-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for March 9th – 15th calls for the likelihood of BELOW normal temperatures and ABOVE normal precipitation.
- El Niño/La Niña STATUS: La Niña Advisory
- Forecast: Transition to neutral with possible El Niño developing this summer
-Area drought status: Abnormally Dry (D0) for the northern Santa Cruz Mountains, San Benito County, southeastern Monterey County and southern Santa Clara County. None for the rest of Monterey & Santa Cruz Counties.
