Another Nice Day Before a Cool, Rainy Weekend
Late season rain is on the way to the Monterey Bay Area, but not quite yet. Instead, please continue to enjoy the seasonable but windy weather. We remain stuck in between a big ridge out over the Pacific and general ‘troughiness’ over the Northern Rockies. The only difference we’ll notice on Thursday is that some low and mid-level moisture has rotated around the high and will push in from the northwest. While Thursday’s temperatures and wind speeds aren’t expected to be all that different than previous days, the increased moisture will lead to a better chance of low cloudcover, especially late in the day. The ridge begins to move back to the west on Friday but we won’t see a lot of difference in our weather. The big difference will be on Saturday as an unseasonably cold trough of low pressure rapidly digs down the coast. The cold front is likely to arrive sometime around midday on Saturday bringing light to moderate rain to the region. Showers may linger all the way into Sunday morning, but models are trending dryer. See more in the extended forecast below.
AIR QUALITY: Good to Moderate
***GALE WARNING***
... for the near coastal waters from Point Pinos south to Point Piedras Blancas extended until 3AM Friday.
…and for the near coastal waters from Pigeon Point to Point Pinos in effect from until 3AM Friday.
*Northwest winds 20 to 30 kt with gusts up to 40 kt and seas 8 to 10 ft.
*Strong winds will cause hazardous seas which could capsize or damage vessels and reduce visibility.
Mariners should alter plans to avoid these hazardous conditions.
Remain in port, seek safe harbor, alter course, and/or secure the vessel for severe conditions.
Thursday: Mostly sunny with a few high clouds passing through and low clouds on the coast late. A touch warmer yet with coastal highs in the 60s to upper 70s—warmest on the north side of the bay—and 70s to low 80s inland. Gusty northwesterly onshore and up-valley winds for most of the day.
Overnight: Low clouds will increase, pushing into nearby valleys. Partly cloudy at the coast and low valleys, mostly clear inland. Lows will be warmer with upper 40s to low 50s at the coast, 40s inland. Patchy fog possible by sunrise. Breezy, gusty at times at the exposed coast.
Friday: Patches of low clouds on the coast, otherwise mostly sunny with a few high clouds passing through. Coastal highs in the 60s to mid 70s—warmest on the north side of the bay—and 70s with a few low 80s inland. Gusty northwesterly onshore and up-valley winds for most of the day.
Extended: Rain arrives on Saturday with much cooler temperatures expected—we’re talking widespread upper 50s to 60s even for inland areas. After the front passes, we’ll see a chance of showers in to Sunday morning. Thunderstorms are looking less and less likely at this time. We’ll start to clear out on Sunday but it will be another cool day. Temps will slowly warm early next week, but the winds will likely stick around.
*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 (in parenthesis).
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This week's normal temperatures:
--COASTAL CITIES--
LOW: 48ºF
HIGH: 64ºF
--INLAND CITIES--
LOW: 44ºF
HIGH: 73ºF
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-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for May 9th – 15th calls for the likelihood of ABOVE normal temperatures and near normal precipitation.
- ENSO (El Niño/La Niña) STATUS: El Niño Advisory, La Niña Watch
- ENSO Forecast: Transition from El Niño to neutral by Spring and then to La Niña by summer.
-Area drought status: Currently drought-free
