January 3, 2022
High clouds are slowly increasing ahead of a Pacific storm which is tracking west to east into the Pacific Northwest and northern California. The thrust of this system is more west to east so precipitation will spread no further south than a Bay Area/Stockton line later tonight and Tuesday. Cloud cover from this system should keep most locations above the freezing mark tonight. More below in the frost discussion.
Upper level high pressure will build in from the west behind this system, maintaining our dry pattern through Thursday night. More models are coming into line regarding a system due in Friday into Saturday. There are some models that depict showers spreading as far south as Kern County while others show them ending in the Fresno and Merced areas. We’ll continue to forecast a small chance of light showers in the forecast for late Friday into Saturday, mainly from Fresno County north.
Following this system, an extremely amplified pattern is expected. A massive high shows up centered over Nevada with a big ridge jutting far into the north, all the way into the Yukon Territory of Canada, allowing polar air masses to slide down the back side of the high and into the already frozen Midwest. The main impact on our weather will be increasing amounts of night and morning fog with very dry conditions lasting for a prolonged period of time. If we are going to receive any precipitation during the first ten days of January, it will have to be this coming Friday through Saturday.
Forecast: Variable cloudiness tonight through Wednesday with patchy ground fog towards sunrise. Mostly clear to occasionally partly cloudy Wednesday night through Friday night with patchy night and morning fog and low clouds. Increasing cloudiness Friday morning leading to a chance of light showers Friday afternoon through Saturday morning, mainly from Fresno County northward. Partly to mostly cloudy Saturday afternoon and night. Mostly clear Sunday through Monday with areas of night and morning fog and low clouds.
Short Term:
Madera 34/57/38/55 | Reedley 33/57/33/56 | Dinuba 33/56/37/55 |
Porterville 33/57/37/56 | Lindsay 32/57/37/55 | Delano 35/56//38/55 |
Bakersfield 38/58/41/56 | Taft 41/56/44/56 | Arvin 37/57/40/56 |
Lamont 37/57/40/57 | Pixley 34/57/38/55 | Tulare 32/56/36/55 |
Woodlake 32/57/36/56 | Hanford 34/57/38/56 | Orosi 32/57/37/55 |
Wind Discussion: Winds will be generally at or less than 7 MPH with periods of near calm conditions through Thursday.
Rain: The only chance of rain I see for the next 10 days will be this coming Friday into Saturday. A lower latitude storm will be tracking from west to east, mainly in Oregon and northern California. Some models do show light showers spreading in as far south as Kern County while others show showers no further south than Fresno County. I feel the best course of action is to forecast a slight chance of showers from Fresno County north. If precipitation does occur, most locations should pick up no more than a tenth of an inch.
Frost: Air temperatures as of 1:00PM are running in the low to mid 50s, which is generally a degree or two warmer than 24 hours ago. Dew points are in the mid to upper 30s, slightly lower than yesterday at this time. A weather system tracking from west to east is already spreading high clouds over the region. They should be dense enough tonight for many locations to remain at least slightly above freezing. Locations that do fall below freezing will likely not drop below the 30 degree mark. A dry front will move through sometime late tonight or Tuesday morning and should begin to nudge dew points up. They’ve been fairly low recently. The flow aloft is also westerly which will begin to slowly modify the valley floor for above average temperatures.
Lows Tonight:
Terra Bella
Af |
Porterville
32 |
Ivanhoe
31 |
Woodlake
Af |
Strathmore
Af |
mcFarland
32 |
Ducor
Af |
Tea Pot Dome
Af |
Lindsay
31 |
Exeter
32 |
Famoso
Af |
Madera
Af |
Belridge
32 |
Delano
Af |
North Bakersfield
Af |
Orosi
31 |
Orange Cove
32 |
Lindcove
31 |
Lindcove Hillside
Af |
Sanger River Bottom
30 |
Root Creek
31 |
Venice Hill
32 |
Rosedale
Af |
Jasmine
Af |
Arvin
Af |
Lamont
Af |
Plainview
31 |
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: January 4