Temperatures will remain above seasonal norms in Southern California on Saturday as offshore gradients relax. A return of onshore flow will result in slight cooling at the coast and in coastal valleys, but interior areas will be slightly warmer.
A ridge of high pressure off the coast will spread over California, bringing the first heat wave of 2020, the National Weather Service said. High temperatures of 85 to 95 will be common, with the hottest readings on Friday and Saturday.
Record-breaking April rains eliminated all drought and abnormal dryness from Southern California and up the Central Coast through Monterey County, but drought has worsened in northwestern California, the U.S. Drought Monitor said Thursday.
Spring storms that included five consecutive days of soaking rain last week knocked out drought conditions in Southern California, according to this week’s U.S. Drought Monitor report.
To hear that the weather is producing average results prompts thoughts of a metronome, plain brown wrappers and the smell of vanilla. But that certainly is not how Los Angeles’s rain intake for the water year has reached its historical average.
A nearly stationary storm will be slow to wring out all of its moisture over central and Southern California into the end of the week.
While California will not receive a soaking rain similar to what occurred at the beginning of the week, residents across the state can expect unsettled weather to stick around through Wednesday.
This week, Southern California may have its most soaking rain since Christmas after parts of Northern California picked up their first rain since January. To say it has been dry recently in the Golden State is an understatement. The state just had its driest February in 126 years, according to NOAA. Drought has also returned. About one-third of California is in moderate drought, and nearly 70% of the Golden State is abnormally dry, according to the latest report from the U.S. Drought Monitor. Reservoirs remain in fairly good shape, but the snow-water equivalent (how much water is in the snowpack) in the Sierra Nevada is about half of what is expected at this time of year.
The mudslides that follow wildfires in Southern California can be deadly and difficult to predict. New research can help officials identify areas prone to these mudslides and respond before disaster occurs, according to scientists.
Mudslides, or debris flows, can occur when rainfall washes away the buildup of sediment in mountain channels. Roughly equal parts water and sediment, debris flows are strong enough to carry large boulders downhill and threaten communities on or near the mountains.
Through the past week, much of Southern California has experienced an offshore breeze, promoting above-average temperatures. Heading into the first full week of February, that will change as this storm system tracks through. A major storm system that is expected to bring feet of snow to the Intermountain West will usher in potentially damaging wind gusts to Southern California. Powerful north-to-northwest wind gusts will pick up in earnest late Sunday across Southern California and Nevada, leading to localized power outages and travel issues.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
