nice cool down coming

The past two days in Chico have been dry and sunny, with highs in the 80s (85 degrees on Wednesday; 89 degrees yesterday). Temperatures will creep back into the 90s the next couple of days, but not as hot as previously expected- highs will only top out around 93 degrees both today and tomorrow. As we look ahead to Sunday and early next week, we will see a nice cooling of the temps, with highs on Sunday in the mid 80s through next Wednesday. This will be courtesy of a low pressure system coming in from the Pacific Ocean and moving to our north. That will set up the Delta Breeze and allow temps to remain below average for several days beginning Sunday. Ah, fall is just around the corner- I can feel it! The main event happening this weekend in Chico is the 20th annual Chico World Music Festival. The featured artist for this year's festival is Jake Shimabukuro, who I hear plays a mean ukulele. He will play tonight at Laxson Auditorium on the Chico State University campus. Tomorrow is the main day of the Chico World Music Festival, with several stages on the Chico State campus playing host to a myriad of national and international performers. You can hear a variety of music from many different genres, from traditional Irish to Zydeco to big band to African rhythms. Some performances will be inside (Laxson Auditorium), while others will be outside (Taylor and Sycamore stages). There will also be family activities, such as face painting and kids' stage performances, as well as international food carts stationed around the festival grounds. You can go to the Chico Performances link to the right of this page for complete details. The weather for the festival looks fairly warm, with highs around 93 degrees and plenty of sunshine. However, the outdoor stages are set up under a thick canopy of trees, so you can lounge in the shade on the grass while listening to the music. How nice! Here's Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Sunny, with a high near 93. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon. Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 65. South wind 5 to 7 mph becoming calm after midnight. Saturday Sunny, with a high near 93. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon. Saturday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 62. Southeast wind around 7 mph. Sunday Sunny, with a high near 87. South wind around 9 mph. Sunday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 59. Monday Sunny, with a high near 86. Monday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 58. Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 85. Tuesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 55. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 87. Wednesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 57. Thursday Mostly sunny, with a high near 88.

cooler the next couple of days

After a near record high temperature of 105 degrees on Monday, Chico saw a ten degree temperature drop with the high yesterday of 95. It'll be even cooler today, with the high expected to be around 90 degrees. The Delta Breeze kicked in last evening, cooling the morning lows down to around 60 degrees this morning and aiding in cooling off the highs for the next two days. Highs tomorrow should also remain around the average high for this time of year before heating up again into the mid 90s Friday and Saturday. However, fingers crossed, highs by next Tuesday will not get above 90 degrees. I'm hoping this happens, as I am ready for fall! I hate seasonal lag! We sometimes will see temps in the 90s well into October, and that just sucks! Hopefully not this year, but only time will tell. For now, let's just get through the rest of this week, shall we? Here's Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Sunny, with a high near 90. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon. Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 63. South southeast wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 92. Calm wind becoming southwest around 6 mph in the afternoon. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 65. South southeast wind 5 to 7 mph becoming calm in the evening. Friday Sunny, with a high near 95. Calm wind becoming west southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon. Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 66. Saturday Sunny, with a high near 95. Saturday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 64. Sunday Sunny, with a high near 91. Sunday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 61. Monday Sunny, with a high near 90. Monday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 61. Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 88.

gradual cool down

It reached 100 degrees at the Chico State University Farm on the south side of town today, the first time in over a month it has reached the century mark in Chico. Hopefully people who attended the Taste Of Chico today found ways to stay cool! Looking ahead the next seven days, it looks like there will be a slow moderation of temperatures- from the upper 90s tomorrow to around 90 by next Sunday. Overnight lows will also gradually cool- from the mid 60s overnight tonight to around 60 by next Sunday morning. Normals for the second week of September are 91 degrees for the high and 58 degrees for the low. Is it fall yet? Here's Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Tonight Clear, with a low around 65. Southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm. Monday Sunny and hot, with a high near 98. Northeast wind 6 to 9 mph becoming west northwest in the afternoon. Monday Night Clear, with a low around 66. West northwest wind around 6 mph becoming light and variable. Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 95. Northeast wind around 7 mph becoming south southwest in the afternoon. Tuesday Night Clear, with a low around 64. East southeast wind around 7 mph. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 93. Wednesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 62. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 93. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 62. Friday Sunny, with a high near 92. Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 61. Saturday Sunny, with a high near 92. Saturday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 61. Sunday Sunny, with a high near 91.

September heat

As is typical this time of year, we will see a mini- heat wave across Northern California the next few days. The string of above- average temperatures began yesterday, with northerly (re: downsloping) winds helping the high reach 93 degrees in Chico (average for September 6th is 91 degrees). That string will continue through at least the middle of next week, with Monday and Tuesday looking like the hottest days. Highs then will be around 100 degrees in Chico, with highs in Redding topping out near 105. Ugh! Hopefully a cooling pattern will set up by the end of next week, with highs near average. Overnight lows will be warm, as well, with low to mid 60s (we should be in the upper 50s this time of year). Artoberfest kicks off today with Chico Palio, happening in Bidwell Park. It's modeled after the Palio di Siena in Italy, except real horses are not used. Instead, art horses made of various materials are used, with competitors "racing" around a track at Sycamore Field in Lower Bidwell Park. Teams who race compete for prizes, and it's all part of Artoberfest, which begins officially next month. I don't understand why the kick-off to Artoberfest happens this early. Anyway, that's Chico for you. I'll put up a link to this year's Artoberfest on my weather blog home page so you can check out the myriad of happenings celebrating the local arts here in Chico. If attending the Chico Palio today, which starts at noon, wear light colored clothing, as temps will creep into the mid 90s by mid-afternoon. Also wear sunscreen, as brilliant sunshine will dominate. Here's Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Sunny, with a high near 93. Northeast wind 5 to 7 mph becoming light and variable. Tonight Clear, with a low around 63. South wind 5 to 7 mph becoming light and variable. Sunday Sunny and hot, with a high near 96. North northeast wind around 6 mph becoming light and variable in the morning. Sunday Night Clear, with a low around 65. Light and variable wind becoming northeast 5 to 7 mph after midnight. Monday Sunny and hot, with a high near 99. Northeast wind around 7 mph becoming west southwest in the morning. Monday Night Clear, with a low around 65. Tuesday Sunny and hot, with a high near 97. Tuesday Night Clear, with a low around 65. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 93. Wednesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 63. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 93. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 62. Friday Sunny, with a high near 90.

Chico heat

Chico used to have a minor league baseball team named the "Heat," and we'll be feeling the heat by late this weekend. Today will be mild, as a trough of low pressure skirts by us, bringing heavy rain to the Pacific Northwest. Highs today under sunny skies will be around 85 degrees. Temperatures will warm up after today, with upper 80s for tomorrow and lower to middle 90s by Saturday. Sunday and Monday look to be the hottest of the next seven days, with highs pushing the century mark. By Tuesday and Wednesday, look for cooler temperatures (relatively speaking, of course), with highs backing off into the lower to middle 90s. It's not unusual in September to see highs pushing the century mark. We here in Northern California see it most every year. September is usually the San Francisco Bay area's hottest month on average, for example. We don't see consistent fall-like temperatures until late October. I can't wait until then! Here's Chico's hot seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Sunny, with a high near 86. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon. Tonight Clear, with a low around 61. South wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm after midnight. Friday Sunny, with a high near 89. Northwest wind 7 to 10 mph. Friday Night Clear, with a low around 63. North northwest wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm in the evening. Saturday Sunny, with a high near 93. North wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the morning. Saturday Night Clear, with a low around 64. Sunday Sunny and hot, with a high near 97. Sunday Night Clear, with a low around 65. Monday Sunny and hot, with a high near 98. Monday Night Clear, with a low around 66. Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 94. Tuesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 63. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 92.

hot weekend ahead

It's that time of year in which we see alternating periods of nice, mild weather with scorching hot periods. Yesterday's high temperature in Chico was a pleasant 87 degrees under sunny skies and low humidity. Those conditions will continue today, albeit slightly warmer. By this weekend, however, look for hotter weather as temps soar into the mid and perhaps even upper 90s. The normal high temperature in Chico for the first week of September is 92 degrees, while the average low is 59, just for a comparison. The heat looks like it may hang out for several days, as highs stay in the mid 90s through the middle of next week. The Taste Of Chico is this Sunday, which will feature several local restaurants selling items off of their menus in a festive atmosphere in downtown Chico. You can taste samples from these restaurants' menus and hear live music from local bands while roaming the streets of downtown. Dress appropriately, as the heat will be in full effect. Expect highs on Sunday to be in the mid and upper 90s. Here's Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Sunny, with a high near 88. Calm wind becoming south southeast 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 61. South wind 5 to 8 mph becoming east in the evening. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 87. Calm wind becoming south southwest 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 60. Light and variable wind becoming north northeast around 5 mph after midnight. Friday Sunny, with a high near 91. North northeast wind around 7 mph becoming west northwest in the morning. Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 62. Saturday Sunny, with a high near 94. Saturday Night Clear, with a low around 64. Sunday Sunny and hot, with a high near 96. Sunday Night Clear, with a low around 66. Monday Sunny, with a high near 95. Monday Night Clear, with a low around 65. Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 94.

warming up again

After a hot Friday and Saturday in which high temperatures in Chico soared into the mid 90s (95 degrees on Friday and 96 on Saturday), it cooled off by about ten degrees both yesterday and today (85 yesterday, and so far 86 today). That's thanks to a trough of low pressure and cool front that slid through the area yesterday and today. That same front brought showers and thunderstorms to parts of the valley and Sierra Nevada mountains the past 24 hours. It has also been breezy, with winds gusting from the southeast to 20 mph. It should begin to heat up again by later this week, with highs creeping from the upper 80s tomorrow and Wednesday into the mid 90s by this coming weekend. Summer is not over with us yet, despite Labor Day being the unofficial end of summer. Here's Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 62. East wind 5 to 10 mph. Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 88. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon. Tuesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 61. East southeast wind 3 to 8 mph. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 88. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon. Wednesday Night Clear, with a low around 61. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 85. Thursday Night Clear, with a low around 59. Friday Sunny, with a high near 92. Friday Night Clear, with a low around 63. Saturday Sunny, with a high near 94. Saturday Night Clear, with a low around 65. Sunday Sunny, with a high near 95. Sunday Night Clear, with a low around 65. Monday Sunny, with a high near 94.