Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Eureka, CA
Issued by NWS Eureka, CA
084 FXUS66 KEKA 181022 AFDEKA AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION National Weather Service Eureka CA 322 AM PDT Sat May 18 2024 .SYNOPSIS...Temperatures will be near normal to slightly below normal over the next week as weak fronts move through the region. Northwesterly winds will be gusty each afternoon particularly at coastal areas and ridges as the sea breeze pushes inland. && .DISCUSSION...Much of Northwest California is clear tonight while stratus slowly expands up the interior valley of Sonoma County into Hopland and possibly toward Ukiah, a well as up the Mendocino coast. Elsewhere some isolated clusters of clouds are evident on the nighttime microphysics imagery this morning near Humboldt Bay and the Klamath River. These small areas will likely expand over the next several hours bringing a brief period of cloud cover to portions of the Humboldt and Del Norte coasts this morning before mixing results in a mostly clear day. Besides the challenge of the marine layer stratus each morning the rest of the forecast is fairly straight forward for the next week. Northerly winds will dominate the forecast over the coastal waters this week with very strong winds just off the coast. As upper level shortwaves and weak surface reflections of these shortwaves move through the region the winds will fluctuate slightly with a stronger period of winds Sunday into the first half of the week. On land these winds will be reflected as gusty north-northwesterlies each afternoon into the early evening. Winds will be strongest along ridgelines and northwest to southeast oriented valleys and coastal headlands. At this time the winds are expected to remain below wind advisory criteria with conditions very typical for this time of year. The King Range will likely remain persistently windy throughout the day and night with a more north-northeasterly orientation overnight into the morning hours. This well mixed lower atmosphere will likely result in limited coverage of the coastal stratus through at least Monday. Moisture within the marine layer will increase by mid-week potentially resulting in higher status coverage in the morning hours despite the continued northerly winds. /RPA && .AVIATION...Gusty northerly winds maintaining VFR conditions at CEC this morning, though scattered stratus and haze are possible prior to sunrise. Broken stratus development and reduced visbility`s expected in the Humboldt Bay area over the next few hours as weak offshore winds remain decoupled beneath a marine inversion. Coastal terminals will likely clear out by late afternoon as 25-35 knot gusts shift closer to the shoreline and mix down. Similarly, satellite imagery indicates a strong LL cloud signature moving slowly up the Russian River valley toward UKI. Although progressing a bit slower than yesterday, southerly flow should usher in MVFR ceilings through late this morning before mixing out with increasing northerly winds. && .MARINE...Gusts 35-45 knots in the outer waters will peak early this morning with significant wave heights exceeding 15 feet at 10-11 seconds, propagating hazardous seas conditions into the inner waters. Winds and seas expected to diminish slightly, however steep and dangerous seas greater than 10 feet will continue to be a threat late this weekend as gales persist in the outer waters. Current model guidance indicates the strongest winds and wave response shifting to the southern waters on Sunday before another resurgence of gales early next week. Gales finally expected to cease by mid next week as the coastal pressure gradient weakens. && .EKA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... CA... None. NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA COASTAL WATERS... Hazardous Seas Warning until 4 AM PDT Sunday for PZZ450-455. Gale Warning until 4 AM PDT Sunday for PZZ470. Gale Warning until 9 PM PDT Sunday for PZZ475. && $$ Visit us at https://www.weather.gov/eureka Follow us on Facebook and Twitter at: https://www.facebook.com/NWSEureka https://www.twitter.com/NWSEureka For forecast zone information see the forecast zone map online: https://www.weather.gov/images/eka/zonemap.png