January 11, 2021
Summary: The areas of low clouds and fog from this morning have burned off except for one stubborn patch over northern Kings County. Temperatures have warmed into the mid to upper 50s, except for Hanford which is reporting 49 under a stubborn patch of low clouds which will soon exit the premises. A trough of low pressure is approaching the coast of the Pacific Northwest and will spread rain over Washington, Oregon and the northern ¼ of California Tuesday through Wednesday morning. satellite imagery depicts high clouds overrunning the top of the high off the northern and central coast. They will begin to spread into central California after midnight to possibly limit the formation of fog. If these clouds are too thin, then they won’t make much difference.
By Wednesday, a very strong upper high will be building over the eastern Pacific with its center about 500 miles off the southern California coast. Models show this high expanding northward and eastward, essentially covering the eastern Pacific and the western 1/3 of the U.S.
The fog game will be on each night for the next week to ten days. The fact that the valley is now drying out from what little rain we received earlier in the month means the fog may have a more difficult time taking over. Even so, a strong warm air inversion will be over the valley floor, so we’ll see what the fog monster decides to do.
An inside slider will dive into the interior west Saturday with no real impact on our weather. I am watching a trend developing on models for about the 20th through the 23rd. Some models are depicting a low developing over the Desert Southwest or even southern California with a very strong surface high over the Great Basin and possibly a ridge extending northwestward into western Canada. In theory, this would result in colder weather. This far out, however, the confidence level is very low but it’s something worth studying in the coming days.
Forecast: Partly cloudy through Tuesday night with areas of night and morning fog and low clouds. Mostly clear Wednesday through this coming Monday with areas of night and morning fog and low clouds with hazy sunshine in the afternoons in most areas.
Short Term:
| Madera 33/60/35/62 | Reedley 32/62/34/64 | Dinuba 31/60/34/63 | |
| Porterville 32/63/34/64 | Lindsay 31/63/33/63 | Delano 31/63/34/65 | |
| Bakersfield 38/65/40/66 | Taft 47/64/48/64 | Arvin 35/65/38/65 | |
| Lamont 34/64/37/65 | Pixley 33/62/35/63 | Tulare 32/61/35/62 | |
| Woodlake 33/61/35/63 | Hanford 33/62/36/64 | Orosi 32/61/35/63 | |
Winds: Winds through Thursday will be at or less than 10 MPH and variable in nature during the late mornings and afternoons and generally less than 5 MPH during the night and early morning hours with extended periods of near calm conditions.
Rain: Expect dry conditions for the next week to possibly ten days.
Frost: Expect widespread low to mid 30s again tonight. the coldest river bottom and similar low frost pockets will dip down to 29 to 30 degrees. Most flat terrain locations will again range in the low to mid 30s. satellite imagery shows a considerable amount of mid and high level clouds a few hundred miles off shore. These clouds may arrive during the early morning hours which, in theory, could nudge temperatures up a tad. If these clouds remain too thin, they won’t make much difference. Areas of fog and low clouds will again form after midnight, but the arrival of higher clouds may inhibit the formation of widespread fog. Most, if not all, locations may very well be above freezing Wednesday due to high clouds streaming overhead. Very strong upper level high pressure will be overhead Thursday through the weekend which will allow readings in the mid to upper 60s. possibly eclipsing 70 in Kern Count from Thursday one. With warmer afternoons, temperatures will have further to fall to reach the freezing point, so most locations will be above the freezing point from Thursday on.
Lows Tonight:
| Terra Bella
32 |
Porterville
32 |
Ivanhoe
31 |
Woodlake
Af |
| Strathmore
32 |
McFarland
32 |
Ducor
Af |
Tea Pot Dome
32 |
| Lindsay
30 |
Exeter
31 |
Famoso
Af |
Madera
Af |
| Belridge
31 |
Delano
32 |
North Bakersfield
32 |
Orosi
31 |
| Orange Cove
Af |
Lindcove
31 |
Lindcove Hillside
Af |
Sanger River Bottom
29 |
| Root Creek
31 |
Venice Hill
Af |
Rosedale
Af |
Jasmine
Af |
| Arvin
Af |
Lamont
Af |
Plainview
32 |
Mettler
Af |
| Edison
Af |
Maricopa
Af |
Holland Creek
af |
Tivy Valley
31 |
| Kite Road South
Af |
Kite Road North
31 |
AF=Above Freezing
Next update: January 12/am