November 20, 2023
Summary: At the upper levels of the atmosphere, a fairly strong ridge of upper level high pressure is anchored along the west coast with a ridge extending inland into the western ¼ of the US. The current altimeter reading at Boise, Idaho is 30.52 inches of mercury while at LAX the current pressure is 30.07. This is creating a rather robust off shore flow. Gusty northeast winds are currently whistling over the high Sierra and the Kern County mountains. Sandburg above the Ridge Route has recorded a peak wind gust of 52 mph at last report. Occasionally this pattern mixes drier air down to the valley floor, lowering dew points. This gives the atmosphere a greater ability to cool at night. most ag locations are in the mid to upper 30s this morning with isolated pockets approaching the 32 degree mark. The current pattern will continue through Tuesday night. by late Wednesday, a weak trough of low pressure will drop southward from the Pacific Northwest into California. Any precipitation will remain well north. However, we will see some increase in cloudiness late Wednesday and early Thursday. Behind this system, a broad area of low pressure will develop over the interior west with California flanked along the far western side of the trough. This will result in a northerly flow both at the surface and aloft which will dry out the atmosphere even more. If dew points fall to projected levels over the weekend, widespread low to mid 30s will be likely, possibly as early as Saturday with a greater possibility Sunday through Tuesday.
Forecast: Mostly clear through Tuesday with patchy night and morning fog. Variable cloudiness late Wednesday and Wednesday night. partly cloudy for a time Thursday morning. becoming mostly clear Thursday afternoon and on through Monday.
Temperatures
| Madera 65/36/70/37/69 | Reedley 65/37/70/37/68 | Dinuba 63/35/68/35/67 |
| Porterville 66/36/70/36/68 | Lindsay 64/33/68/34/68 | Delano 65/37/70/36/69 |
| Bakersfield 67/42/72/41/70 | Taft 63/47/67/47/68 | Arvin 68/37/69/37/67 |
| Lamont 68/37//69/37/68 | Pixley 64/36/69/36/68 | Tulare 63/34/66/34/69 |
| Woodlake 64/34/68/34//68 | Hanford 65/36/69/36/68 | Orosi 63/33/67/34/68 |
Seven Day Forecast
| Thursday Mostly clear 40/69 | Friday Mostly clear 37/66 | Saturday Mostly clear 33/64 | Sunday Mostly clear 34/64 | Monday Mostly clear 32/63 |
Two Week Outlook: November 26 through December 2 This model shows below average temperatures over most of the lower 48. One of the only exceptions will be central California which should experience near average readings. This model also indicates near average precipitation for the central valley.
November: This model depicts above average temperatures for California eastward to the northern Great Basin. Precipitation projections show near average rainfall.
November, December, January: This model projects above average temperatures over the western US. It’s rather surprising that this model is projecting near average precipitation. Typically, during strong El Nino years, which this is, above average precipitation prevails.
Wind Discussion: Winds through Thursday will be generally at or less than 7 mph with periods of near calm conditions.
Rain Discussion. No rain is likely for the next week to possibly 10 days.
Frost Discussion: A broad area of low pressure will develop over the interior west with California flanked along the far western side of the trough. This will result in a northerly flow both at the surface and aloft which will dry out the atmosphere even more. If dew points fall to projected levels over the weekend, widespread low to mid 30s will be likely, possibly as early as Saturday with a greater possibility Sunday through Tuesday. For the first time this season, coldest locations may dip down to 28 to 30 degrees. It’’s still unclear how low dew points will fall. Similar patterns in the past indicate low to mid 30s are likely with coldest frost pockets in the upper 20s.
Mid afternoon dew points: Mid to upper 40s. Kern: Low to mid 40s.
ET for the past seven days: Stratford, .51, Parlier, .49, Arvin .77, Delano .51.
Soil temperatures: Stratford 60, Parlier 62, Arvin 61, Delano 59
Average Temperatures: 63/41, Record Temperatures: 80/27
Heating Degree Days Season. 167 -106 widely from location to location. courtesy of the NWS
Precipitation: Seasonal total for Fresno .21, Monthly .21
Precipitation for Bakersfield: Season: .30, Monthly: .00
Average Temperature this Month 58.7 +3.5 taken at NWS Hanford.
Water year season is from October 1st through September 30.
Chilling Hours November 1st through February 28: Parlier, 88 Arvin, 68 Belridge, 71 Shafter, 66 Stratford, 85 Delano 72. Courtesy UC Davis
Sunrise, 6:43. Sunset, 4:46 hours of daylight, 10:05
NA=Not available
Yesterday’s Weather:
MCE : Merced AP 153 : 64 / 42 / 0.00 /
MAE : Madera AP 253 : 65 / 37 / 0.00 /
FAT : Fresno AP 333 : 64 / 42 / 0.00 /
HJO : Hanford AP 242 : 65 / 38 / 0.00 /
NLC : Lemoore NAS 234 : 66 / 37 / 0.00 /
BFL : Bakersfield AP 496 : 63 / 45 / 0.00 /
VIS : Visalia AP 292 : 64 / 39 / 0.00 /
PTV : Porterville AP 442 : 62 / 38 / 0.00 /
24hr seas. % L.Y % S.A. 365
STOCKTON T 0.64 43 1.24 84 1.48 13.45
MODESTO T 0.95 84 1.19 105 1.13 12.27
MERCED 0.00 1.00 79 0.99 79 1.26 11.80
MADERA 0.00 0.43 45 0.50 52 0.96 10.79
FRESNO 0.00 0.21 20 0.66 62 1.07 10.99
HANFORD 0.00 0.13 16 0.59 71 0.83 8.13
BAKERSFIELD 0.00 0.32 55 0.66 114 0.58 6.36
BISHOP 0.00 0.25 47 0.46 87 0.53 4.84
DEATH VALLEY NP 0.00 0.01 6 0.02 12 0.17 2.20
SALINAS 0.00 0.22 17 1.46 113 1.29 12.58
PASO ROBLES T 1.74 167 0.71 68 1.04 12.15
SANTA MARIA 0.01 0.33 28 0.99 83 1.19 13.32
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Next report: November 20/pm
At John Hibler Weather Forecasting, it is our goal to provide the most accurate forecasts available. Weather forecasting, unlike any other business, invites errors. Weather, by nature, is chaotic. It is our goal to be as accurate as humanly possible.