Western Heat, But Nice At the Coast
Air Quality (as of 11:30AM)
GOOD for all reporting areas.
WEATHER STORY
High pressure will strengthen over the West as we head into the weekend. Temperatures will continue to rise inland until Sunday. The overall air mass will have a bit more moisture in it over the next few days, so it may feel muggy. The ridge moves a bit east early next week which will allow a weak trough to arrive on the West Coast. This will enhance onshore flow and yield an overall cool-down into early next week.
Saturday: Low clouds hug the coast, but it will be mostly sunny elsewhere. Some high smoke may make it hazy at times today and high clouds will increase from the east late. Warmer and a bit muggy, with coastal highs in the mid 60s to mid 70s and 80s to around 108ºF inland. Winds pick up for inland valleys in the afternoon and early evening.
Overnight: Mostly cloudy with patchy fog possible. Mostly clear inland outside of the major valleys. Muggy conditions remain, with lows in the 50s on the coast and 50s-60s inland.
Extended: The ridge will be at its max on Sunday, then begin to weaken. Most areas will experience their warmest highs before cooling off early in the week. Gusty winds expected to stick around for inland areas in the afternoon with breezy conditions on the coast.
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This week's normal temperatures:
--COASTAL CITIES--
LOW: 55ºF
HIGH: 70ºF
--INLAND CITIES--
LOW: 53ºF
HIGH: 86ºF
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-The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for August 21st – 27th calls for the likelihood of near normal temperatures and near normal precipitation*.
*Note: little to no precipitation usually falls this time of year.
-El Niño/La Niña STATUS: Neutral
-Forecast into Winter: La Niña Watch
-Area drought status: “Extreme Drought” for the entire viewing area with the far southeastern corner of Monterey County and far eastern San Benito County considered “Exceptional Drought”
