Summary: Winds at the CHP office near the bottom of the Grapevine have gusted to 56 MPH. For now, anyway, it appears to be very localized. The strongest pressure differences will be tonight through around midday Monday. One model suggests winds gusting in the low 30s in the Bakersfield area tomorrow morning through midday. Whether or not this comes to fruition remains to be seen.
Strong surface high pressure covers Nevada with considerably higher pressure off the southern California coast. Just another classic Santa Ana wind event which should be over by Monday evening as pressures equalize between the coast and the interior. Further north, winds are light with dew points near to marginally below what they were yesterday at this time. There is an excellent chance of at least local frost again, especially north of the Kern/Tulare County line, but even there it will be spotty due to drainage winds off the Sierra.
In the big picture, a large upper high is building northward into western Canada and will reach southern Alaska and northwest Canada by Saturday morning. This time, it’s a bit different, however, as the southern portion of this high will fortunately be over the interior west with coldest air masses moving into the Rockies and points eastward. Anyway you shake all this out, it will be a dry pattern, for sure. However, later next week, there are hints of a change that could possibly bring low pressure systems in from the northwest, sliding southward just off shore. Depending upon the possible strength of these systems, rain is possible but at this point I feel uncomfortable putting that in the forecast.
Forecast: It will be mostly clear through Wednesday. Generally clear skies will continue Wednesday night through Friday. Mostly clear to occasionally partly cloudy Saturday through Sunday.
Short Term:
Madera 30/70/31/72 | Reedley 32/70/31/71 | Dinuba 30/69/29/70 | |
Porterville 31/69/30/70 | Lindsay 29/71/29/70 | Delano 33/71/32/72 | |
Bakersfield 36/71/35/73 | Arvin 37/74/34/73 | Taft 42/74/42/75 | |
Lamont 34/71/33/73 | Pixley 31/71/30/72 | Tulare 28/70/28/71 | |
Woodlake 29/71/29/72 | Hanford 30/71/30/73 | Orosi 29/71/30/72 |
Winds: Strong, gusty Santa Ana winds are commonplace through the mountains and valleys of southern California. Windiest locations are currently reporting gusts in excess of 40 MPH. pressure gradients will be tightest tonight then begin to slacken Monday afternoon. These winds have hit the valley floor, but only in small areas like near the CHP office at the bottom of the Grapevine where winds have gusted to 56 MPH. from this point on, it will be difficult to discern how much valley real estate these winds will eventually affect, but the bottom line is that similar configurations in the past have spread these winds even to a little north of Bakersfield. We’ll just continue to forecast strong, gusty winds in the extreme south valley, possibly increasing in coverage as the night wears on. North of the Kern/Tulare County line, winds will be generally less than 7 MPH with extended periods of near calm conditions. There may, however, be weak drainage winds out of the east off the Sierra Nevada foothills where the foothills meet the valley. Basically, however, north of Kern County winds will not be a factor.
Rain: Expect dry conditions for at least the next week to ten days.
Frost Information: Dew points are all over the place, as compared to 24 hours ago. For now, it appears temperatures in the particularly cold spots will remain low, but depending on primarily wind behavior, readings may be as much as 2 to 4 degrees warmer or colder tonight. For now, I’ll go with the coldest locations back down into the mid to upper 20s with many locations in the low 30s. it’s possible the valley portion of Kern County may be milder tonight, depending upon the behavior of the winds.
Coldest unprotected river bottom and like locations could potentially drop to 26 to 29 degrees overnight. Flatland topography not affected by local winds will generally be between 29 to 32. Hillsides will again be freezing though perhaps just slightly above in the coldest regions. As far as Tuesday morning is concerned, it will again be based on wind patterns and mixing which could help to moderate the situation. However, it does appear the very dry air mass currently in place will remain so with the coldest locations in the lower 30s Wednesday and Thursday. There may be above freezing conditions Thursday and Friday.
For tonight, the inversion will be moderate with temperatures at 34 feet generally 3 to 5 degrees warmer. The opposite will be true though where winds pick up as there would be no inversion at all.
Lows Tonight:
Terra Bella
32 |
Porterville
30 |
Ivanhoe
30 |
Woodlake
30 |
Strathmore
29 |
McFarland
31 |
Ducor
33 |
Tea Pot Dome
31 |
Lindsay
29 |
Exeter
29 |
Famoso
34 |
Madera
31 |
Belridge
30 |
Delano
32 |
North Bakersfield
33 |
Orosi
30 |
Orange Cove
30 |
Lindcove
28 |
Lindcove Hillside | Sanger River Bottom
26 |
Root Creek
28 |
Venice Hill
29 |
Rosedale
32 |
Jasmine
32 |
Arvin
Af |
Lamont
Af |
Plainview
30 |
Mettler
Af |
Edison
Af |
Maricopa
Af |
Holland Creek
af |
Tivy Valley
Af |
Kite Road South
Af |
Kite Road North
Af |
AF=Above Freezing
Next Report: Monday morning, November 12