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