170
FXUS66 KHNX 031637
AFDHNX
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
937 AM PDT SUN MAY 3 2026
KEY MESSAGES
1. WIND ADVISORIES AND A LAKE WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH
MONDAY FOR THE KERN RIVER VALLEY, INDIAN WELLS VALLEY, AND
MOJAVE DESERT. WIND ADVISORY FOR THE MOJAVE DESERT SLOPES IN
EFFECT THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING.
2. 15 TO 35 PERCENT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE SIERRA
NEVADA SUNDAY AND MONDAY, DECREASING TO 10 TO 15 PERCENT ON
TUESDAY. 5 TO 20% CHANCE ACROSS THE VALLEY AND INTO THE
FOOTHILLS DURING THIS PERIOD.
3. COOLER, UNSETTLED WEATHER SUNDAY UNTIL TUESDAY WITH SNOW
ABOVE 7,000 FEET IN THE SIERRA NEVADA.
4. GUSTY WINDS ALONG THE SIERRA CREST AND EASTERN TULARE AND
KERN COUNTIES.
5. WARMING TREND ON WEDNESDAY INTO NEXT WEEKEND.
DISCUSSION
A CUTOFF LOW IS CURRENTLY MOVING DOWN THE PACIFIC COAST BEFORE
MOVING ONSHORE EARLY THIS COMING WEEK. THIS SYSTEM WILL BRING
NEAR-NORMAL TEMPERATURES TODAY (MID 70S TO LOW 80S IN THE VALLEY)
AND BELOW-NORMAL TEMPERATURES MONDAY AND TUESDAY (HIGH 60S TO
LOW 70S ACROSS THE VALLEY) BEFORE A MAJOR WARMUP BEGINNING
WEDNESDAY. IN THE MEANTIME, THERE IS A 15 TO 35 PERCENT CHANCE
OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE SIERRA NEVADA SUNDAY AND MONDAY,
DECREASING TO 10 TO 15 PERCENT ON TUESDAY AND 5 TO 20% ACROSS
THE VALLEY AND INTO THE FOOTHILLS DURING THIS PERIOD. IN THE
SIERRA NEVADA, THERE IS A 20 TO 60 PERCENT CHANCE OF 4 INCHES OF
SNOW ABOVE 8,000 FEET. THERE IS A 5 TO 15 PERCENT CHANCE OF A
TENTH OF AN INCH OF RAIN IN THE VALLEY THROUGH TUESDAY, WITH THE
BEST CHANCES IN THE EASTERN HALF. WINDS WILL BE A CONCERN ALONG
THE SIERRA CREST AND IN EASTERN KERN AND TULARE COUNTIES. THERE
IS A 60 TO 100 PERCENT CHANCE OF GUSTS OF AT LEAST 40 MPH IN
THESE AREAS TODAY. THERE IS ALSO A 50-100% CHANCE OF GUSTS OF
AT LEAST 40 MPH ALONG THE CRESTS OF THE COAST RANGE TODAY.
MONDAY, THE RISK SHIFTS TO EASTERN TULARE AND KERN COUNTIES,
WITH A 50 TO 100 PERCENT CHANCE OF GUSTS EXCEEDING 40 MPH.
TUESDAY, THIS RISK WILL EXPAND TO INCLUDE THE SIERRA CRESTS.
THERE ARE MULTIPLE WIND AND LAKE WIND ADVISORIES IN EFFECT
THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING.
AS THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM CLEAR THE AREA ON WEDNESDAY, A RIDGE
WILL QUICKLY BUILD OVER THE AREA, BRINGING WARM AND DRY
CONDITIONS. THIS WILL BE BRING STEADILY INCREASING TEMPERATURES,
WITH A GREATER THAN 40 PERCENT CHANCE OF HIGHS OF 95 OR HIGHER
ACROSS MOST OF THE VALLEY BY NEXT SUNDAY. CURRENT CPC GUIDANCE
INDICATES A 90-100 PERCENT OF ABOVE-AVERAGE TEMPERATURES IN THE
6-TO-10-DAY PERIOD, AND OUR FIRST TRIPLE-DIGIT TEMPERATURES MAY
BE ON THE HORIZON.
AVIATION
VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS OVER CENTRAL
CALIFORNIA, EXCEPT IN AND NEAR THUNDERSTORMS, WHERE MVFR AND IFR
CONDITIONS CAN BE EXPECTED.
AIR QUALITY ISSUES
MINOR AIR QUALITY ISSUES MAY AFFECT VULNERABLE POPULATIONS
SUNDAY AFTERNOON.
CERTAINTY
THE LEVEL OF CERTAINTY FOR DAYS 1 AND 2 IS HIGH.
THE LEVEL OF CERTAINTY FOR DAYS 3 THROUGH 7 IS HIGH.
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
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 8 AM PDT TUESDAY FOR CAZ338.
LAKE WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 11 PM PDT MONDAY FOR CAZ332.
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 11 PM PDT MONDAY FOR CAZ337-339.
PUBLIC...AC
AVIATION....AC
WEATHER.GOV/HANFORD
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