December 28, 2019
Summary: It is a cool but very nice afternoon by late December standards. Skies are generally clear with temperatures in the lower 50s as of 1:00pm, just about where they should be for this time of year. Upper level high pressure currently overhead will be suppressed towards the southeast as a developing low in the Gulf of Alaska races south/southeast, eventually centering just off the northern California coast by early Sunday evening. The low will then track southward just off shore and will be centered just west of the Channel Islands by sunrise Monday. As the low advances just off shore, bands of showers will rotate inland. The southern Sierra Nevada will not receive much precipitation as the main dynamics of this storm will be from roughly the Coast Range westward to the coast and off shore. The best chance of anything half way significant on the valley floor will be close to the Interstate 5 corridor and possibly the southwestern corner of the valley in Kern County. This system will eventually pull further south into northern Baja by Monday evening.
The air mass behind this system will be relatively cold but certainly nothing unusual for late December and early January. As upper level high pressure builds into northern California behind this system, an off shore flow will develop which typically is conducive for increasing amounts of night and morning valley fog with hazy afternoon sunshine. This is the way the new decade will begin.
Most of the model information this afternoon indicates high pressure will dominate until at least the eighth or ninth of January. Some of the medium range models for after the eighth are calling for a possibly colder but active weather pattern. This is something we’ll have to study.
Forecast: Mostly clear before midnight. Partly cloudy after midnight with areas of fog and low clouds developing. Increasing cloudiness Sunday. A chance of rain after roughly midafternoon with periods of light rain Sunday night into Monday morning. mostly to partly cloudy from late Monday morning through Tuesday morning. Clearing Tuesday afternoon. Mostly clear Tuesday night and New Year’s Day with areas of night and morning fog and low clouds. Mostly clear Wednesday night through Saturday with areas of night and morning fog and hazy afternoons.
Short Term:
| Madera 32/55/40/55 | Reedley 32/55/41/55 | Dinuba 31/54/40/53 | |
| Porterville 32/56/40/55 | Lindsay 31/55/40/54 | Delano 32/56/41/55 | |
| Bakersfield 35/57/43/54 | Taft 37/57/43/54 | Arvin 32/59/42/54 | |
| Lamont 33/58/42/54 | Pixley 32/56/40/55 | Tulare 31/54/40/54 | |
| Woodlake 31/55/39/55 | Hanford 32/56/40/55 | Orosi 31/55/39/55 | |
Winds: Winds tonight will be generally at or less than 6 MPH with periods of near calm conditions. Winds later Sunday morning through Sunday night will be out of the east/southeast at 5 to 12 MPH with stronger gusts, mainly along the west side. Winds late Sunday night and Monday will be out of the northwest at 8 to 15 MPH, becoming light to near calm Monday night and Tuesday.
Rain: A fast moving, cold low pressure system will slide southeastward just off the central coast from late Sunday afternoon through Monday morning. bands of mainly light showers will rotate inland beginning possibly as early as midafternoon Sunday and lasting into mid to late morning Monday. Most locations will record no more than a tenth or two, however towards the west side, especially along the Interstate 5 corridor, more than .25 is possible, possibly .25 could be recorded over the southwestern section of the valley portion of Kern County. Expect dry weather by midday Monday, remaining dry for the rest of next week. Medium range models indicate an active pattern may set up about January 8th or 9th, but at this point it’s just something to study.
Frost Discussion: Widespread low to mid 30s are likely tonight, possibly even a tad milder. It will depend on the arrival of mid and high level clouds in advance of a rapidly approaching low pressure system. On Monday morning, all locations will be above freezing with most, if not all, locations above freezing Tuesday morning, as well, due to residual cloud cover.
From Wednesday through Saturday, widespread low to mid 30s are anticipated each morning as a relatively cold air mass becomes trapped on the valley floor under a warm air inversion in association with building high pressure aloft. Fog may become more and more of a player, but as we’ve learned in recent years, fog seems to have a more difficult time taking over as they did in earlier decades. At any rate, no critical weather pattern is on the horizon.
Lows Tonight:
| Terra Bella
32 |
Porterville
32 |
Ivanhoe
31 |
Woodlake
32 |
| Strathmore
32 |
Mcfarland
31 |
Ducor
33 |
Tea Pot Dome
32 |
| Lindsay
31 |
Exeter
30 |
Famoso
32 |
Madera
32 |
| Belridge
30 |
Delano
33 |
North Bakersfield
33 |
Orosi
31 |
| Orange cove
31 |
Lindcove
30 |
Lindcove Hillside
Af |
Sanger River Bottom
29 |
| Root Creek
30 |
Venice Hill
32 |
Rosedale
32 |
Jasmine
32 |
| Arvin
33 |
Lamont
32 |
Plainview
31 |
Mettler
33 |
| Edison
33 |
Maricopa
32 |
Holland Creek
33 |
Tivy Valley
31 |
| Kite Road South
33 |
Kite Road North
31 |
AF=Above Freezing
Next report: December 29/morning