Again the Central Coast had to fight a combination of low clouds and smoke haze from fires along the California and Oregon border. While the haze is likely to continue Friday and Saturday we should start to see some improvement in temperature. I'm still expecting night and morning low clouds and afternoon clearing but that clearing should happen a little faster, especially in the interior.
An upper low positioned in the Pacific Northwest continues to provide northwest flow at the steering level for smoke which is transporting moderate air quality into San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. That upper low is also responsible for the deep marine layer which impacted beaches coastal valleys and interior valleys over the last couple of days.
As the upper low begins to kick out on Friday that marine depth should begin to decrease a little bit. So while I'm talking about warming It won't be that dramatic. In fact, it might not be that noticeable at beaches and coastal valleys while being most notable in the interior. An interesting wrinkle is that some subtropical moisture is streaming up from the south which will give us some high clouds Friday into Saturday. This could also produce a sprinkle or two for southern Santa Barbara County but nothing significant is expected.
Friday beaches will see daytime highs generally in the 60s with 60s and low 70s in the coastal valleys with upper 70s returning to the interior. Interior temperatures continue to warm over the weekend recovering back into the 80s.
After the weekend I expect temperatures to continue a small warming trend with mid to upper 70s returning in the coastal valleys next week.
Beyond the seven day, I expect temperatures to generally stay cooler than average as a series of systems look to impact the Pacific Northwest. While I don't expect local significant rainfall our proximity to the storm pattern we'll keep the temperatures well in check if not below average.
Later Friday it is the fall equinox (11:50pm). But meteorological fall began at the beginning of the month.
And the equinox isn't what you think it is. Click HERE to find out more.
