091
FXUS66 KHNX 201749
AFDHNX
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
949 AM PST TUE JAN 20 2026
KEY MESSAGES
1. DENSE FOG IN THE VALLEY IS EXPECTED AT LEAST THROUGH
WEDNESDAY.
2. CHANCE OF SNOW ABOVE 7,000 FEET IN THE SIERRA NEVADA
THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. OTHERWISE, DRY CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL FOR
THE WEEK.
DISCUSSION
THE VISIBILITY IN THE FOG THIS MORNING IMPROVED IN SOME AREAS
UNTIL THEY WORSENED BEFORE SUNRISE. HOWEVER, THE FOG SEVERITY
INDEX (FSI) IS ALREADY SHOWING HIGH TO VERY HIGH RISKS BEGINNING
LATE THIS EVENING INTO TOMORROW MORNING. LUCKILY, THE LATEST
ENSEMBLES CONTINUE TO AGREE THAT A TROUGH SLIDE INTO OUR AREA
WHICH WILL BRING SOME MIXING TO OUR AREA WHICH WILL HELP REDUCE
THE FOG POTENTIAL FOR THURSDAY AND FRIDAY.
THE LATEST ENSEMBLES HAVE A 10 TO 20 PERCENT CHANCE OF ANY RAIN
ACCUMULATION HERE IN THE VALLEY ON THURSDAY AND FRIDAY FROM THE
INCOMING TROUGH. THIS TROUGH ALSO BRINGS A 60 TO 70 PERCENT
CHANCE OF A TRACE OF SNOW AND A 5 PERCENT OR LESS CHANCE OF 4
INCHES OF SNOW FOR MOST SPOTS ABOVE 7,000 FEET IN THE SIERRA
NEVADA WITH THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS SEEING HIGHER CHANCES OF MORE
SNOW.
THE ENSEMBLES ALSO SHOW STRONG AGREEMENT THAT A WEAK RIDGE WILL
SETUP OVER THE WEEKEND AND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK WHICH WILL KEEP
THINGS DRY. THIS WEAK RIDGE ALSO SIGNALS THE FOG IS MORE LIKELY
TO RETURN OVER THE WEEKEND. THE CPC HAS A 70 TO 80 PERCENT
CHANCE OF ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES IN BOTH THE 6-10 AND 8-14
DAY OUTLOOKS. HOWEVER, THE 6-10 DAY OUTLOOK HAS A STRONG SIGNAL
OF BELOW AVERAGE PRECIPITATION AND THE 8-14 DAY OUTLOOK HAS A 33
TO 40 PERCENT CHANCE OF BELOW AVERAGE PRECIPITATION.
AVIATION
THE LIFR TO IFR CONDITIONS WILL GRADUALLY IMPROVE THROUGH 21Z.
MVFR TO IFR CONDITIONS WITH AREAS OF VFR CONDITIONS EXPECTED
BETWEEN 21Z TODAY AND 05Z WEDNESDAY. AFTER 05Z, IFR TO LIFR
CONDITIONS BEGAN TO PREVAIL AGAIN UNTIL AT LEAST 18Z. WINDS
REMAIN LIGHT AND VARIABLE THROUGH THE TAF CYCLE. VFR CONDITIONS
PREVAIL FOR THE SIERRA NEVADA, COASTAL RANGE, AND IN THE MOJAVE
DESERT FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS.
AIR QUALITY ISSUES
ON TUESDAY JANUARY 20 2026, UNHEALTHY FOR SENSITIVE GROUPS IN
KERN COUNTY. FIREPLACE/WOOD STOVE BURNING STATUS IS:
NO BURNING FOR ALL IN KERN COUNTY. NO BURNING UNLESS REGISTERED
IN FRESNO, KINGS, MADERA, MERCED, AND TULARE COUNTIES. BURNING
DISCOURAGED IN KERN (GREATER FRAZIER PARK AREA) AND SEQUOIA
NATIONAL PARK AND FOREST.
CERTAINTY
THE LEVEL OF CERTAINTY FOR DAYS 1 AND 2 IS HIGH.
THE LEVEL OF CERTAINTY FOR DAYS 3 THROUGH 7 IS MEDIUM.
CERTAINTY LEVELS INCLUDE LOW...MEDIUM...AND HIGH. PLEASE VISIT
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/HNX/CERTAINTY.HTML FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
AND/OR TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK.
HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
DENSE FOG ADVISORY UNTIL NOON PST TODAY FOR CAZ301>307-309>312-
314>316.
PUBLIC...JPK
AVIATION....JPK
WEATHER.GOV/HANFORD
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