Projected Storm Totals for Mariposa, Oakhust and Yosemite Valley Less Than 0.10"
February 21, 2020 - The National Weather Service Hanford Office reports a weather system is forecast to brush the south end of the region and bring generally light rain and mountain snow to portions of the Central California Interior Friday night and Saturday.
Snow will fall above 6000 feet. Here are the latest projected rain and snowfall amounts.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Hanford CA 256 AM PST Fri Feb 21 2020 .SYNOPSIS...Dry weather and well above normal high temperatures can be expected over the district today. A storm system will bring showers to much of the district Friday evening through Saturday. Dry weather is expected Sunday through the end of next week along with a day to day warming trend. A return to unseasonably warm afternoon temperatures is likely by the middle of next week. && .DISCUSSION...Our abnormally long dry spell is finally going to be broken over a good portion of the central California interior early this weekend. Unfortunately the precipitation that falls between Friday evening and Saturday evening will not put much of a dent in the existing large rain deficit so far this water year. It will also be the only break we get from dry weather through the end of February. The storm that will bring showers into the central California interior is still well offshore and currently centered roughly 1,000 miles west of the central California coast. (33N 132W) Although high clouds associated with this storm will be present today, there will be enough sunshine to warm temperatures to well above normal again this afternoon. In many locations, today will be about as warm as yesterday. Meanwhile, the storm over the Eastern Pacific will continue to drift southward. Once this closed low gets to the latitude of the Channel islands, it will make a left turn toward the coast tonight then trek inland across southern California Saturday where the heaviest precipitation is likely to occur along with a chance of thunderstorms. Otherwise, this closed low will bring showers to the district tonight and Saturday. Showers will be most numerous over the mountains and desert. By the time this low exits into northwestern Arizona Saturday evening, there will be little more than a few residual showers over the mountains and desert. Precipitation totals from this system will be highest in the mountains of Tulare county and Kern county where an east to southeast flow could bring orographic enhancement Saturday. Elevations above 6,000 feet could pick up a few to several inches of snow by the time showers decrease early Saturday evening. Otherwise we`re not expecting any significant hydrological impacts from this storm system over the central California interior. Rain totals will range from at most a few hundredths of an inch in Merced county and Mariposa county to as much as a third of an inch south of Fresno county. Portions of the valley mainly north of Fresno county may not see any rain... at least not enough to settle the dust. Otherwise, Saturday will be considerably cooler than today with temperatures much closer to normal for a change. Upper level ridging will move in behind this storm system Sunday for a return of dry weather. This high pressure ridge will slowly build in over the Golden State next week and bring mostly clear skies along with a day to day warming trend. During the mid to later part of next week, thermometer readings could top the 80 degree mark in the warmest locations of the San Joaquin Valley, lower foothills and the Kern county desert. However, minimum temperatures during this period will be seasonably chilly.Source: NWS