Mariposa projected rainfall totals for weekend weather system less than 0.10"
Oakhurst projected rainfall totals for weekend weather system 0.10" to 0.25"
Yosemite Valley projected rainfall totals for weekend weather system 0.25" to 0.50"
February 28, 2020 - The National Weather Service Hanford Office reports a storm system will bring mainly light rain and mountain snows to parts of the Central California Interior from late Saturday afternoon through Sunday night.
Snow levels will drop as low as 3000 feet Sunday.
Above are the latest projected rain and snowfall amounts.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Hanford CA 410 AM PST Fri Feb 28 2020 .SYNOPSIS...Near-record high temperatures are possible across the much of the San Joaquin Valley today. A storm system will bring much cooler weather and a chance of showers to much of the district on Sunday, with the best chances of measurable precipitation remaining in the Sierra and Kern County mountains. Ridge builds back into the region by next week, with dry weather returning to the area. && .DISCUSSION...IR satellite imagery showing extensive cloud cover across the district which has kept current temperatures in the 50s. Low temperatures will end up near 50 in most locations, which is more common for late April! Despite the overcast skies,the central California interior will experience one last day of near- record temperatures. The daily record for Fresno is 79 degrees, with an expected high of 81 degrees. Bakersfield`s record high temperature for the date is 81 degrees, with an expected high of 82 degrees. The upper level ridge responsible for the warm temperatures continues to shift east, giving way to a zonal flow by this evening. Zonal flow will remain across the area for a majority of Saturday before turning to more of a southwesterly flow ahead of the approaching system. Cooler, onshore flow will lower temperatures by as much as 10 degrees across the valley, but will still remain above normal by 5 to 10 degrees for this time of year. A few orographic showers will be possible in the higher elevations of the Sierra by Saturday evening. Main cold core of the upper level low will drop south through the region on Sunday. Models are beginning to show subtle differences in the exact positioning of the upper level low. The GFS/ECMWF/GDPS model solutions show the cold core further west near the Bay Area, and subsequently drawing more moisture into the system. However, the NAM and higher resolution NAM12 has the upper level low centered near Mono Lake, which would translate into much less precipitation. Since the NAM12 is the sole outlier, we have opted to go with a more western track of the cold core low. This model solution is also more in line with the current WPC/NBM QPF guidance. As the main cold core low move over the region, instability will increase across the area and isolated thunderstorms are possible on late Sunday morning and afternoon. Small hail and dangerous lightning are the primary threats. Additionally, temperatures will continue to drop, with high temperatures remaining in the 50s. This system is not expected to produce significant rainfall in the valley nor Kern County desert, with amounts generally at 1/10 of an inch or less. Higher QPF amounts is expected in the Sierra, with general amounts between 1/4 to 2/3 of an inch. Lighter QPF amounts are expected into Kern County mountains, where between 1/10 and 1/4 of an inch is possible. Snow is expected in the Sierra, especially north of Tulare County into Yosemite National Park. Since this is a colder system, snow levels across the district will drop to as low as 3000 feet by Sunday morning, where a dusting is possible along the Grapevine and Tehachapi Pass. Snowfall totals will increase going northward, where general amounts between 3 to 6 inches, with locally up to 8 inches. On Monday, the attention will turn from precipitation to the chance of strong winds in the Central Sierra mountains and foothills. Models are showing strong northeasterly winds aloft late Sunday into Monday. Again, the uncertainty with the exact position and strength remains low at this time. From Tuesday into the end of the forecast period next Friday, Ridge of high pressure returns to the area. Temperatures will once again increase to above normal values along with dry weather returning to the area.Source: NWS