Projected Precipitation for Mariposa 1.00" - 1.50"
Projected Precipitation for Oakhurst 0.50" - 1.00" 1.00"- 1.50"
Projected Precipitation for Yosemite Valley 1.00" - 1.50" 1.50"- 2.00"
April 19, 2022 - The National Weather Service Hanford Office reports a storm system is expected to produce significant precipitation across most of Central California Thursday through Friday.Snow levels will start around 6,000 feet Thursday, before dropping to about 5,000 feet by Friday morning.
Up to 18 inches of snow is possible across the higher elevations of the Sierra Nevada north of Kings Canyon NP.
The majority of this precipitation will fall Thursday afternoon through Thursday night.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Hanford CA 336 AM PDT Tue Apr 19 2022 .SYNOPSIS...A weak system will bring a chance of light precipitation from Fresno County northward today. Gusty winds are likely in the Kern County Deserts through this evening. A stronger storm system will impact Central California Thursday and Friday, resulting in widespread precipitation, cooler than normal temperatures and gusty winds. High pressure will bring dry conditions and a warming trend over the weekend. && .DISCUSSION...Pacific frontal system currently pushing through Norcal this morning. SREF indicating this system will push into central CA later this morning and bring some light precipitation from Fresno County northward through early this afternoon. QPF progs are trending lower with a tenth to a quarter inch of liquid precipitation expected for the Yosemite Park area with up to a tenth of an inch further south to Kings Canyon. A few hundredths of an inch of rain are possible in Merced County today southward to Madera and northern Fresno Counties. The snow level is expected to be around 7000 feet and an inch or two of snow is not out of the question today for higher elevations in Yosemite Park. Measurable precipitation is not anticipated south of Fresno County with this system. Another impact from this system will be a period of gusty winds over the Kern County Desert areas from later this morning through this evening. Gusts up to 55 mph will be possible along the Mojave Desert Slopes and a Wind Advisory is in effect for the Kern County Desert areas through this evening. Shortwave ridging moves into central CA for tonight and Wednesday which will provide for a period of dry weather and allow for a slight recovery in temperatures with slightly above normal daytime readings expected. The SREF is in good agreement with previous NBM runs in showing a fairly strong upper low approaching Norcal Wednesday night and brings a moist upper trough through CA Thursday morning through Friday afternoon. This system will bring widespread precipitation to our area along with cooler than normal temperatures along with a period of gusty winds across the mountains and deserts of Kern County. Precipitation is expected to spread southward into our area by Thursday morning with the bulk of the precipitation expected Thursday afternoon through Thursday night. Latest NAM progs are showing instability and CAPE will be sufficient enough for at least a slight chance of thunderstorms across much of our area by Thursday evening. QPF progs are indicating 0.75 to 1.5 inches of liquid precipitation across much of the Sierra Nevada and adjacent foothills with the snow level between 6500 and 7000 feet on Thursday lowering to around 5000 feet on Friday with a chance of post-frontal showers continuing over the area. One to two feet of snow are anticiapted over the Sierra Nevada north of Kings Canyon above 7000 feet while 8 to 16 inches are possible above 7000 feet further south in Tulare County. Most of the San Joaquin Valley and the Kern County Mountains can expected between quarter and a half inch of rainfall. With the snow level expected to remain above pass levels in Kern County, we are not anticipating any adverse impacts over the major passes in Kern County aside from gusty winds as times. A chance of post-frontal showers exists for nearly our entire are on Friday before the trough moves to the east of our area by Friday night. Medium range models and their ensemble members are in fairly good agreement with building a fairly strong upper ridge into CA over the weekend which will provide for dry weather along with a noticable warming trend. The ridge is progged to strengthen early next week resulting in daytime high temperatures of 10-13 Deg F above climatological normals next Monday and Tuesday. && .AVIATION...Areas of MVFR conditions with local mountain obscuring IFR in the Sierra Nevada from Fresno County northward through 24Z today. Otherwise, VFR conditions will prevail across the Central CA interior for at least the next 24 hours. && .AIR QUALITY ISSUES...None.Source: NWS
