Cool, Clear Mornings. Warm, Sunny Afternoons.

Keep those sunglasses handy! There will be plenty of sunshine to enjoy over the next several days. Mornings will be cool, but afternoons warm with temps above average for this time of year. Dry conditions will be a trend you can expect into the foreseeable future as high pressure blocks our usually active January storm track off to the north. There is a slight cool down this weekend, bringing temperatures back to near seasonable.

AIR QUALITY: Good to Moderate

Thursday: Sunny and warm with highs in the mid 60s to low 70s. Light winds except over the hills where northerly winds of 20-30mph are possible.

Overnight: Another clear, cool morning - though lows will be a touch warmer. Expect mostly 40s near the coast, with 30s and low 40s elsewhere. Southern valleys will dip into the upper 20s to low 30s, there patchy frost is possible.

Friday: Mostly clear with a few high clouds passing through. Some low cloudcover may approach the coast as well. Cooler, with highs mainly in the 60s to around 70ºF. Breezy southwesterly winds on the exposed coast in the afternoon, then windy up valleys late in the day.

Extended: High pressure will remain anchored to our west/northwest, blocking wet storm systems well to the north. Another “inside slider” will sneak in through the weekend and could enhance the offshore winds again Saturday and into early next week. Rain is likely to hold off for the next week or two.

*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: 42ºF
HIGH: 60ºF

--INLAND CITIES--
LOW: 37ºF
HIGH: 61ºF
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-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for January 16^th – 22^nd calls for the likelihood of BELOW normal temperatures and BELOW normal precipitation.

- ENSO (El Niño/La Niña) STATUS: La Niña Watch
- ENSO Forecast: Transition to La Niña into the fall and persist through the winter months.
- Area drought status: Abnormally dry for San Benito County, northeastern Monterey County and eastern Santa Clara County. Drought-free elsewhere
- Monterey Bay Sea Surface Temperature as of January 9^th : 54.1ºF (avg of 6 buoys) [January Average: 54.7ºF]