Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS San Francisco Bay Area, CA

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286 FXUS66 KMTR 130559 AFDMTR Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service San Francisco CA 1059 PM PDT Wed Jun 12 2024 ...New AVIATION... .SYNOPSIS... Issued at 1234 PM PDT Wed Jun 12 2024 Quiet through the rest of the week. Near normal temps by the weekend. Increasing confidence for high wind potential and increased fire danger Sunday into early next week. && .UPDATE... Issued at 856 PM PDT Wed Jun 12 2024 No changes to the forecast were require attm. Temperatures will return to near normal for the end of the week through the weekend. Gusty west/northwest surface winds will spread across our area over the weekend into the beginning of next week, with elevated fire weather concerns likely following suit. && .SHORT TERM... (This evening through Thursday) Issued at 1234 PM PDT Wed Jun 12 2024 Noticeably cooler temps today across the area as the upper level ridge moves out and the marine layer deepens in response to a weak mid level shortwave trough. Additionally, more robust marine stratus associated with moisture from a weak disturbance off the coast of southern CA will continue to linger for areas from around Santa Cruz to the Big Sur coast. A few degrees warmer for Thursday as the shortwave kicks out. Overall not much in the way of impactful changes in the short term. Pleasant day ahead on Thursday with little in the way of heat risk. && .LONG TERM... (Thursday night through next Tuesday) Issued at 1234 PM PDT Wed Jun 12 2024 Heading into the weekend will be relatively quiet as temps cool a bit again down to around seasonal normals. The real story will be later in the weekend and into early next week. A deep upper low currently up in the Gulf of Alaska becomes dislodged and moves into the Pacific Northwest, kicking off another deep disturbance sliding into the West Coast/Great Basin. Well advertised by ensemble cluster analysis, there is high confidence in this pattern change taking place Sunday into Tuesday. Placement of the upper level trough axis is key when determining where the strongest winds will be and their direction. There is higher confidence that the strongest winds will remain over the waters and near coastal areas, including more inland coastal gaps such as the Petaluma Gap, San Bruno Gap, and other NW-SE oriented valleys. While we aren`t expecting any widespread offshore winds as of this forecast, the positioning of the trough will ultimately be the deciding factor, so stay tuned to future updates as confidence gradually increases. With grasses and fine fuels drying out rapidly, it looks like the Sunday-Monday timeframe is one to watch when it comes to elevated fire danger, particularly in the North Bay where fine fuels are drier than elsewhere around the Bay Area and Central Coast. For now, moisture recovery looks decent going into the weekend as winds should remain onshore, but we are keeping a close eye on the positioning of the trough and will update messaging accordingly. && .AVIATION...
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(06Z TAFS) Issued at 1059 PM PDT Wed Jun 12 2024 VFR through the TAF period for SF Bay terminals, though North Bay and Monterey Bay terminals are expected to develop or maintain IFR/LIFR CIGs through the majority of the overnight period tonight. For North Bay terminals, IFR conditions are expected to improve as CIGs lift beyond sunrise, with clearing to VFR shortly after. Meanwhile, Monterey Bay terminals are not expected to clear to VFR during the day on Thursday. Winds light overnight tonight, but increase to become breezy into the afternoon of Thursday. Vicinity of SFO...VFR through the TAF period, with moderate confidence. Stratus may hover near the terminal, but not expecting CIGs to develop. Winds generally light overnight but increase out of the SW in the morning to become breezy, eventually turning to flow out of the NW in the late afternoon. Winds then decrease into the late night of Thursday. SFO Bridge Approach...Similar to SFO. Monterey Bay Terminals...Currently IFR as stratus continues to feed inland off of the coast. CIGs are expected to lower throughout the night, eventually leading to the development of LIFR conditions. Heavy mist is likely to develop as CIGs lower as well, lowering visibilities significantly in the overnight tonight. Towards sunrise, CIGs will begin to lift, eventually becoming MFR towards the late morning. Not expecting clearing for KMRY or KSNS terminals Thursday. Winds W/SW and breezy. A return to IFR conditions expected in the late night of Thursday.
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&& .MARINE... (Tonight through next Monday) Issued at 434 PM PDT Wed Jun 12 2024 Northwesterly winds persist over the northern waters through the end of the week with gale force gusts possible over the northern waters through early Thursday. Widespread strong northwesterly winds with gale force gusts will build by the weekend and continue into next week. Significant wave heights up to around 12 to 15 feet in the outer waters continue into the weekend. && .MTR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... CA...None. PZ...Small Craft Advisory until 3 AM PDT Thursday for Pt Arena to Pt Reyes 0-10 nm. Small Craft Advisory from 3 PM Thursday to 3 AM PDT Friday for Pigeon Pt to Pt Pinos 10-60 NM-Pt Arena to Pt Reyes 0-10 nm. Gale Warning until 9 AM PDT Thursday for Pt Arena to Pt Reyes 10- 60 NM. && $$ SHORT TERM...Behringer LONG TERM....Behringer AVIATION...AC MARINE...DialH Visit us at www.weather.gov/sanfrancisco Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube at: www.facebook.com/nwsbayarea www.twitter.com/nwsbayarea www.youtube.com/nwsbayarea