February 2, 2021
Summary: Temperatures are any where from 8 to 15 degrees cooler than 24 hours ago. Temperatures as of 1:00pm ranged from 61 at Lemoore, basking in the sunshine, to just 51 degrees at Porterville which is still under a low cloud deck. Upslope clouds continue to regenerate as a northwesterly flow is lifted by the Kern County mountains and the west facing slopes of the Sierra Nevada. It’s entirely possible that much of Kern and southeastern Tulare Counties may not clear until some time Thursday morning while Madera, Fresno and Kings County remain relatively clear. There is a northwest breeze blowing down the valley averaging 8 to 15 MPH which will diminish later this evening.
In the big picture, a trough of low pressure is moving into the northern Rockies while a massive high blankets the eastern Pacific Ocean with the northern rim of the high now into Alaska. This puts California under a northwesterly flow aloft through Friday. A bitterly cold plunge of arctic air will dive into Montana by Thursday evening, eventually engulfing the eastern 2/3 of the U.S. this weekend and well into next week while the western ¼ experiences near average to even above average temperatures.
Medium range models are now back off of any chance of rain next week. So get ready to slide back into the La Nina pattern with a blocking ridge of upper level high pressure over the eastern Pacific and much of the U.S.
Forecast: Mostly clear tonight in Madera, Fresno, and Kings Counties. Partly to mostly cloudy in southeastern Tulare County and much of Kern County into Thursday morning. mostly clear later Thursday through Saturday night with patchy night and morning fog and low clouds. Variable clouds at times Sunday through Wednesday interspersed with periods of clear skies with patchy night and morning fog and low clouds.
Short Term:
| Madera 32/58/31/61 | Reedley 32/58/30/60 | Dinuba 31/57/30/60 | |
| Porterville 32/59/31/61 | Lindsay 31/57/30/61 | Delano 32/59/31/61 | |
| Bakersfield 39/58/37/62 | Taft 42/55/44/59 | Arvin 35/59/33/62 | |
| Lamont 36/59/33/61 | Pixley 32/58/31/61 | Tulare 31/57/30/59 | |
| Woodlake 32/58/31/60 | Hanford 33/58/31/61 | Orosi 32/58/30/60 | |
Winds: Winds during the mid morning to afternoon hours will be variable at or less than 10 MPH through Saturday. Winds during the night and early morning hours will be no more than 7 MPH with extended periods of near calm conditions.
Rain: There is a chance of light showers tonight and Wednesday morning from Fresno County north. Sprinkles cannot be ruled out in the south valley. Where precipitation does occur, rainfall amounts will be at or less than .10. expect dry weather from Wednesday morning through the end of the week. There are a couple of models suggesting the possibility of light showers from Fresno County north next Tuesday and Wednesday while other models keep the storm track north of that line. For now, we’ll go with a dry forecast for the next 7 days.
Frost: Temperatures this afternoon are wide ranging due to cloud cover along the eastern and southern flanks of the valley and mostly clear skies can be found over Madera, Fresno, and Kings Counties. Most of the short term high resolutions models indicate that upslope clouds will continue to regenerate over eastern Tulare County and much of Kern County. The freezing level taken over Oakland earlier today was 5,500 feet, so the overall air mass is pretty chilly, but certainly nothing unusual for early February.
Lows tonight will vary widely due to cloud cover over Kern and southeast Tulare Counties and mostly clear skies elsewhere. Dew points in Kern and Tulare Counties are generally in the low to mid 40s but have fallen into the low to mid 30s along the west side and from Fresno County north.
Where skies clear tonight, river bottom and similar low lying frost pockets will potentially drop into the 28 to 29 degree range with most flatland locations ranging from 30 to 35. Locations under the protective cloud bank will only chill into the mid to upper 30s.
On Friday morning, below freezing temperatures will be more widespread as the clouds will have dissipated. Most locations will chill into the upper 20s and lower 30s with low to mid 30s in much of Kern County.
Slight moderation will occur Saturday morning as a westerly flow breaks through. Even so, coldest locations will dip down to 30 to 32 degrees. Strengthening high pressure along with a westerly flow aloft will maintain above freezing temperatures from Sunday and beyond. We’ll also see areas of late night and morning fog and low clouds which will generally burn off in the afternoons. Unlike the eastern 2/3 of the U.S. models indicate a very dry, stable pattern with above average temperatures longer term.
Lows Tonight:
| Terra Bella
31 |
Porterville
31 |
Ivanhoe
30 |
Woodlake
31 |
| Strathmore
31 |
Mcfarland
31 |
Ducor 32 | Tea Pot Dome
31 |
| Lindsay
30 |
Exeter
30 |
Famoso
32 |
Madera
32 |
| Belridge
30 |
Delano 32 | North Bakersfield
32 |
Orosi
31 |
| Orange Cove
32 |
Lindcove
30 |
Lindcove Hillside
Af |
Sanger River Bottom 28 |
| Root Creek
29 |
Venice Hill
30 |
Rosedale
32 |
Jasmine
33 |
| Arvin
Af |
Lamont
Af |
Plainview
31 |
Mettler
Af |
| Edison
Af |
Maricopa
Af |
Holland Creek
AF |
Tivy Valley
30 |
| Kite Rd South
Af |
Kite Road North
30 |
AF=Above Freezing
Next update: February 3/am