final post

Well, this is it. I have decided to end my weather blog after eight years. It was back in the middle of July, 2006 that I started this blog on the website Weather Underground. It was fun and challenging to keep up with this blog, as it was purely a hobby for me. Other life priorities got in the way or were more important, necessitating the need for me to wrap this up. I want to thank those of you who read my blog and I appreciate your support. I started this blog when Chico was in the middle of a heat wave, and I will end it during another heat wave. Farewell, and one last time: Here is Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Sunny and hot, with a high near 101. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Tonight Clear, with a low around 72. South wind around 6 mph becoming light and variable after midnight. Monday Sunny and hot, with a high near 104. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Monday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 74. East southeast wind 6 to 9 mph. Tuesday Mostly sunny and hot, with a high near 100. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon. Tuesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 69. Wednesday Mostly sunny and hot, with a high near 98. Wednesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 69. Thursday Mostly sunny and hot, with a high near 96. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 67. Friday Sunny, with a high near 95. Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 66. Saturday Sunny and hot, with a high near 96.

sunny and warm

I haven't been posting on my weather blog for awhile, mainly due to a combination of having shoulder surgery done and apathy towards my blog. It was getting old after awhile, and I needed to take a break. I contemplated simply ending the blog after nearly eight years (I started this blog on Weather Underground back in July of 2006), but reconsidered and will continue for awhile longer. Anyway, after a warm week this past week, with temps hovering in the low to mid 90s, yesterday was the start of a temporary mild trend, with highs in the 70s to around 80 degrees this weekend. Today should be gorgeous, with sunshine, lighter winds (yesterday was breezy, with winds from the south gusting to 25 mph), and highs in the mid 70s. Tomorrow a weak cold front slides through, with a 20% shot at a shower and highs in the upper 60s. That's well below normal (normal high for early May is 78, while the normal low is 50). If you are a fan of warm weather, don't fret, as highs will warm back into the low and mid 80s for the middle and latter part of this upcoming week. Here are the details from the National Weather Service: Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 75. South wind around 10 mph. Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 51. Southeast wind 7 to 10 mph. Monday A 20 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 69. South southeast wind around 9 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Monday Night A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48. West southwest wind around 6 mph becoming north in the evening. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Tuesday Partly sunny, with a high near 75. North northeast wind 5 to 15 mph becoming west northwest in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 23 mph. Tuesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 49. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 80. Wednesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 51. Thursday Mostly sunny, with a high near 82. Thursday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 53. Friday Mostly sunny, with a high near 85. Friday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 53. Saturday Mostly sunny, with a high near 86.

more rain on the way

Chico's getting a slight break from the weather today after last night's storminess. Chico and Butte County were under two separate Tornado Warnings last evening as a slow-moving thunderstorm moved to the north and east of downtown. There was also plenty of heavy rain, thunder and lightning with this isolated storm. No actual tornadoes touched down, thank goodness. Today we're experiencing partly sunny and dry conditions, with temperatures in the mid 50s. It's been much cooler than normal with these storms, as we should be around 70 degrees this time of year. An even colder storm from the Gulf of Alaska will dive southeastward into Northern California tomorrow, bringing more rain, wind, thunderstorms, and mountain snow. Due to the colder nature of this next storm, snow may fall as low as 2000 feet in elevation. Expect a foot or more of snow above 3000 feet in the Sierra Nevada between Monday and Wednesday. Winter Storm Watches have already been posted for the Sierra, but those will change to warnings by tonight, I'm sure. In the valley, including Chico, up to an inch of rain may fall between Monday and early Wednesday, and thunderstorms are again possible, especially on Tuesday. Winds may gust from the southeast up to 30 mph in the valley, and 45 mph from the southwest in the mountains. We'll get a brief break on Wednesday with sunshine, but another storm arrives on Thursday. Hopefully we'll get a dry weekend next weekend. For now, get ready for more storminess. Here is Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: This Afternoon A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 61. South southeast wind around 7 mph. Tonight A 20 percent chance of rain after 11pm. Increasing clouds, with a low around 43. East wind 5 to 7 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Monday Rain likely, mainly after 11am. Cloudy, with a high near 55. Southeast wind 9 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible. Monday Night Showers and possibly a thunderstorm before 11pm, then showers likely. Low around 42. Southeast wind 10 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Tuesday Showers likely, with thunderstorms also possible after 11am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 54. Southeast wind around 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Tuesday Night A 30 percent chance of showers, mainly before 11pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 40. Wednesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 63. Wednesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 44. Thursday A slight chance of rain. Partly sunny, with a high near 61. Thursday Night A chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 45. Friday A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 65. Friday Night A slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 45. Saturday A slight chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 69. ***UPDATE*** There was a confirmed touchdown of a tornado Saturday evening in Butte County. It was an EF0 tornado and briefly touched down, causing minor damage to an orchard. This is the seventh confirmed tornado touchdown in California this year, according to the National Weather Service.

Tornado Warning

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SACRAMENTO HAS ISSUED A * TORNADO WARNING FOR... WEST CENTRAL BUTTE COUNTY IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA... EXTREME NORTHEASTERN GLENN COUNTY IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA... SOUTH CENTRAL TEHAMA COUNTY IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA... * UNTIL 830 PM PDT * AT 742 PM PDT...A TRAINED WEATHER SPOTTER REPORTED A FUNNEL CLOUD NEAR NORD...OR 10 MILES NORTHWEST OF CHICO...MOVING EAST AT 10 MPH. THE STORM MAY PRODUCE HAIL AS WELL. * THE POSSIBLE TORNADO WILL BE OVER... RURAL WESTERN BUTTE COUNTY NORTHWEST OF CHICO

Wind Advisory in effect until tomorrow morning

From the National Weather Service office in Sacramento: WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 AM PDT SATURDAY... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SACRAMENTO HAS ISSUED A WIND ADVISORY...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 AM PDT SATURDAY FOR THE NORTHERN AND CENTRAL SACRAMENTO VALLEY. * WINDS: STRONGEST SOUTH WINDS SUSTAINED AT 25 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 45 MPH. * TIMING: STRONGEST WINDS THROUGH MIDNIGHT IN THE NORTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEY. WINDS INCREASING IN THE CENTRAL SACRAMENTO VALLEY THIS EVENING...AND CONTINUING INTO EARLY SATURDAY MORNING. * LOCATIONS INCLUDE: REDDING....RED BLUFF...CHICO...OROVILLE AND MARYSVILLE. * IMPACTS: DIFFICULT DRIVING...LOOSE OBJECTS BLOWN AWAY.

rain likely and thunderstorms possible this weekend

Sorry I'm late in posting this, but there were numerous funnel clouds in the Northern Sacramento Valley on Wednesday, prompting Tornado Warnings to be issued in Glenn County, west of Chico. There were other locations in which funnel clouds were spotted on Wednesday, especially the Sacramento area. Chico itself saw no funnel clouds or tornadic activity, just off-and-on rain. We are slowly catching up on our rainfall this rainy season, as Chico has seen about two inches of rain so far this week. More is on the way, with at least two storms affecting us- one tonight and tomorrow, the other Monday into Tuesday. Chico can expect up to an inch of rain between tonight and tomorrow night. Thunderstorms are also possible tomorrow as the cold front passes and the actual low pressure center moves over our area. Forecasters are not ruling out the possibility of an isolated tornado and hail with some of these storms. In the mountains, over a foot of snow is forecast above 5000 feet in elevation over the next 24-36 hours. Another storm Monday into Tuesday will bring us another round of beneficial rain. A chance of showers will linger into the middle of next week. Highs are expected to remain in the mid 50s to mid 60s through the period, which is much cooler than normal for this time of year. We should be in the upper 60s to near 70 degrees for the end of March. Some events happening in Chico this weekend: the Chico Bach Festival, celebrating the famous composer, happens through Sunday on the Chico State campus; check the school's website for specifics; Chico State Wildcats men's baseball team hosts San Francisco State at Nettleton Stadium on the Chico State campus this weekend; again, check the school's athletics website for specific times; and Jason Mraz rolls into town performing an acoustic set on Sunday evening at Laxson Auditorium. Here is Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today A 50 percent chance of rain. Cloudy, with a high near 64. South southeast wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible. Tonight Rain. Low around 50. South southeast wind 14 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible. Saturday Showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 11am. High near 58. South southeast wind 10 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. Saturday Night Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm before 11pm, then a chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 43. Southeast wind 5 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Sunday A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 60. South wind 5 to 7 mph. Sunday Night A 20 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44. Monday Rain likely. Cloudy, with a high near 53. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Monday Night Rain likely. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41. Tuesday A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 53. Tuesday Night A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 40. Wednesday Partly sunny, with a high near 61. Wednesday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44. Thursday A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 58.

rain and more rain

This is the first time in a long time there has been a chance of rain every day in the seven day forecast. First, a recap of the thunderstorm that moved over Chico last evening. This storm dropped .89 of an inch in under an hour, along with pea-sized hail and lots of thunder and lightning. It is rare in these parts for that much rain to fall in such a short time period. It was a massive thunderstorm, for sure. We may see that kind of weather again today, as the low pressure system responsible for that thunderstorm is still hovering over our area. We'll see a brief lull tomorrow and during the day Friday (although there is still the possibility of showers on those days), and then a more powerful storm will bring heavier rain Friday night and into Saturday. A chance of rain will linger well into the weekend and also into next week. Temperatures will be much cooler than they have been, with highs mainly in the upper 50s to around 60 degrees. That's nearly ten degrees below average. Overnight lows will be in the mid 40s. Here's the wet forecast for Chico from the National Weather Service: Today Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. High near 57. Southeast wind 11 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. Tonight Showers likely, mainly before 11pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 46. Southeast wind 11 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Thursday A 40 percent chance of showers, mainly before 11am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 60. South southeast wind 11 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Thursday Night A 50 percent chance of rain, mainly after 11pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49. Southeast wind around 10 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Friday A 50 percent chance of rain. Cloudy, with a high near 63. Southeast wind 9 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph. Friday Night Rain likely. Cloudy, with a low around 52. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Saturday Rain. High near 61. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Saturday Night A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44. Sunday A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 64. Sunday Night A slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 47. Monday A chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 60. Monday Night A chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 46. Tuesday A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 60.