Warm Weather… Not Yet!
Warmer weather is on the way, though it may be a few days before it is felt on the coast.
High pressure will slowly build over the next few days and then rapidly strengthen as we head into the weekend. The result will be a slow warm-up, culminating in a toasty day on Saturday. After that it gets complicated. A weak westward moving low will sneak into the state from the Desert Southwest on Sunday which will bring clouds and a chance of mountain showers/t-storms. The overall air mass will remain warm, but the clouds will limit heating and could change the low-level dynamics at the coast—meaning potentially cooler Mother’s Day temps. With that said, the overall air mass remains warm next week, so above-normal temperatures can be expected.
AIR QUALITY: Good
Wednesday: A little cooler on the coast with some low cloud cover and northwesterly onshore winds. Mostly sunny and slightly warmer inland, however, with highs in the 60s to low 70s.
Overnight: Coastal locations will remain cloudy. Inland, low clouds will be on the increase overnight filling into nearby valleys. Patchy fog is possible, along with some light drizzle. Lows mainly in the 40s, with a few low 50s at the coast.
Thursday: Slightly warmer, but still with pesky low clouds on the coast. Coastal highs in the upper 50s to mid 60s with upper 60s to upper 70s inland. Gusty northwesterly onshore winds at times.
Extended: Temperatures slowly rise through Saturday with occasional passing high clouds and the daily cycle of low clouds on the coast. By Saturday, inland highs may be as much as 10ºF above normal while onshore flow will keep coastal areas seasonable. There may be a chance of mountain showers/storms Sunday-Monday as moisture streams in from the southeast.
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This week's normal temperatures:
--COASTAL CITIES--
LOW: 49ºF
HIGH: 66ºF
--INLAND CITIES--
LOW: 46ºF
HIGH: 75ºF
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-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for May 17th – 23rd calls for the likelihood of ABOVE normal temperatures and ABOVE normal precipitation.
- El Niño/La Niña STATUS: El Niño Watch
- Forecast: Neutral through the end of spring with El Niño developing this summer.
-Area drought status: Currently drought-free
