651  
FXUS66 KLOX 180501  
AFDLOX  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOS ANGELES/OXNARD CA  
901 PM PST FRI JAN 17 2025  
   
SYNOPSIS
 
17/746 PM.  
 
COOLER WEATHER IS EXPECTED THROUGH SATURDAY WITH AREAS OF MORNING  
LOW CLOUDS. WEAK OFFSHORE FLOW RETURNS SUNDAY, WITH LOCAL  
NORTHEAST BREEZES, LESS MORNING LOW CLOUDS, AND A FEW DEGREES OF  
WARMING. ADDITIONAL SANTA ANA WINDS ARE LIKELY BEGINNING LATER  
MONDAY INTO TUESDAY, AND AGAIN ON THURSDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL  
LIKELY BE BELOW NORMAL FOR MUCH OF NEXT WEEK, WITH FROST POSSIBLE  
IN WIND SHELTERED AREAS AWAY FROM THE COAST.  
 

 
   
SHORT TERM (FRI-MON)
 
17/815 PM.  
 
ONSHORE FLOW INCREASED TODAY, WITH LAX-DAGGETT GRADIENT PEAKING  
OVER +5 MB THIS AFTERNOON. AS A RESULT, THERE WAS A COOLING  
TREND TODAY ACROSS COASTAL AND VALLEY AREAS, ALONG WITH INCREASING  
HUMIDITIES. CURRENT SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWING AREAS OF LOW CLOUDS  
FORMING IN AREAS NORTH OF POINT CONCEPTION THIS EVENING, WITH  
PATCHIER COVERAGE SOUTH OF POINT CONCEPTION WHERE THERE IS  
A WEAKER INVERSION. FORECAST SOUNDINGS INDICATE A STRONGER  
INVERSION OVERNIGHT, BUT LOW CONFIDENCE IN THAT AS THE PATTERN IS  
NOT REALLY CONDUCIVE TO WARMING ALOFT. ASIDE FROM THE IMPACTS ON  
AVIATION, IF CLOUDS END UP BEING MORE SOLID THEN OVERNIGHT  
TEMPERATURES WILL BE WARMER AND SOME OR ALL OF THE FREEZE WARNINGS  
(IN EFFECT FOR THE CENTRAL COAST AND THE OJAI VALLEY) MAY NOT PAN  
OUT. EITHER WAY, IT WILL BE ANOTHER COOL DAY ACROSS THE AREA  
SATURDAY WITH HIGHS FROM THE UPPER 50S TO MID 60S AT LOWER  
ELEVATIONS.  
 
*** FROM PREVIOUS DISCUSSION ***  
 
SATURDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY THE MODELS HAVE BEEN CONSISTENT SHOWING  
A SIGNIFICANT WEAKENING IN THE ONSHORE FLOW, AND ACTUALLY TURNING  
AT LEAST LIGHTLY OFFSHORE SUNDAY MORNING. THE NAM HAS BUMPED THE  
LAX-DAG GRADIENT UP TO -5 BUT UPPER SUPPORT IS ALMOST NIL AND  
MOST OF THE HIGH RES MODELS ARE KEEPING WINDS UNDER 20 MPH.  
PROBABLY A GOOD BET THAT ANY MARINE LAYER SOUTH OF PT CONCEPTION  
WILL BE GONE AND DAYTIME TEMPERATURES SHOULD RISE AT LEAST A FEW  
DEGREES. THE GFS REMAINS ONSHORE UNTIL MONDAY SO STILL SOME  
UNCERTAINTY WITH THE SUNDAY FORECAST.  
 
ON MONDAY A TROUGH WILL DIG THROUGH THE GREAT BASIN AND DOWN  
THROUGH AZ PROVIDING THE NECESSARY INGREDIENTS FOR AT LEAST A  
MODERATE SANTA ANA EVENT MONDAY AFTERNOON INTO TUESDAY. ECMWF  
ENSEMBLES STILL CLUSTERING AROUND THE 30-50 MPH RANGE AT LOWER  
ELEVATIONS THROUGH THE TRADITIONAL SANTA ANA WIND-FAVORED AREAS,  
WITH LIKELY SOME GUSTS TO AROUND 60 MPH IN THE MOUNTAINS. PW'S  
CRASH TO UNDER A TENTH OF AN INCH MONDAY, MEANING HUMIDITIES WILL  
LIKELY BE WELL UNDER 10 PERCENT.  
   
LONG TERM (TUE-FRI)
 
17/223 PM.  
 
PART 1 OF NEXT WEEK'S SANTA ANA WIND WILL PEAK EARLY TUESDAY,  
THEN LIKELY DECREASE A FAIR AMOUNT LATE TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND  
EVENING AS UPPER SUPPORT DROPS OFF. TEMPERATURES EXPECTED TO BE  
RIGHT AROUND NORMAL, WHICH IS MID TO UPPER 60S FOR COAST AND  
VALLEYS. POTENTIALLY SOME FROST/FREEZE HAZARDS OVERNIGHT IN WIND  
PROTECTED AREAS.  
 
ON WEDNESDAY, MODELS HAVE BEEN PRETTY CONSISTENT SHOWING A  
RELATIVE BREAK IN THE SANTA ANA WINDS. NOT ZERO, BUT MOSTLY BELOW  
35 MPH. STILL QUITE DRY WITH HUMIDITIES UNDER 20%.  
 
FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY, A SECOND UPPER LEVEL TROUGH  
WILL FOLLOW ALMOST THE EXACT SAME PATH AND CREATE ANOTHER SANTA  
ANA WIND EVENT. WHILE SOME OF THE MODELS ARE SHOWING A STRONGER  
GRADIENT WITH THIS EVENT, THE ENSEMBLES ARE SLIGHTLY WEAKER  
OVERALL. STILL LIKELY IN THE 30-50 MPH RANGE WITH SOME STRONGER  
MOUNTAIN GUSTS.  
 
WINDS EXPECTED TO DROP OFF LATER THURSDAY AFTERNOON WITH AT LEAST  
LIGHT ONSHORE FLOW RETURNING BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON.  
 
THERE ARE INCREASING SIGNALS FOR SOME RAIN NEXT WEEKEND BUT SO FAR  
IT'S NOT LOOKING LIKE AN ATMOSPHERIC RIVER. BOTH THE EC AND GFS  
DETERMINISTIC SOLUTIONS ARE DEFINITELY NOT AN AR PATTERN WITH  
LITTLE TO NO TAP OF MOISTURE TO THE SOUTHWEST. AND ALL BUT A FEW  
OF THE 100+ ENSEMBLE SOLUTIONS INDICATE RAIN TOTALS UNDER A HALF  
INCH.  
 

 
   
AVIATION
 
18/0126Z.  
 
AT 2335Z AT KLAX, THERE WAS NO MARINE LAYER NOR INVERSION.  
 
HIGH CONFIDENCE IN DESERT TAFS, LOW TO MODERATE CONFIDENCE IN  
REMAINDER OF TAFS. TIMING OF FLIGHT CAT CHANGES COULD BE OFF BY UP  
TO +/- 3 HOURS AND OFF BY +/- 1 CAT. CIGS WILL BE PATCHY AND MAY  
SCATTER AND REFORM RANDOMLY THROUGH 18Z, ESPECIALLY SOUTH OF POINT  
CONCEPTION. THERE IS A 50% CHANCE OF VFR CONDS AT KPRB THROUGH  
THE PERIOD.  
 
KLAX...MODERATE CONFIDENCE IN TAF. TIMING OF FLIGHT CAT CHANGES  
MAY BE OFF BY UP TO +/- 3 HOURS. GOOD CONFIDENCE THAT ANY EAST  
WIND COMPONENT REMAINS BELOW 8 KT THRU THE FCST PD.  
 
KBUR...LOW TO MODERATE CONFIDENCE IN TAF. ARRIVAL OF CIGS MAY BE  
AS LATE 14Z OR AS EARLY AS 04Z, WITH A 30% CHANCE OF REMAINING VFR  
THROUGH THE PERIOD.  
 

 
   
MARINE
 
17/858 PM.  
 
IN THE OUTER WATERS, SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY (SCA) LEVEL WINDS FROM  
PT. CONCEPTION TO SAN NICOLAS ISLAND ARE EXPECTED AT LEAST THROUGH  
MIDNIGHT, WITH 30% CHANCE THROUGH 0300 AM. THERE IS ALSO A  
40%-50% CHANCE OF SCA CONDS AGAIN SUN NIGHT/MON, AND A 30% CHANCE  
OF SCA WIND GUSTS OUT OF THE NE FOR MON NIGHT AND TUE MORNING FOR  
THE SOUTHERN OUTER WATERS (PZZ676). OTHERWISE, SUB- ADVISORY  
CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH WED NIGHT.  
 
FOR THE INNER WATERS NORTH OF PT SAL, THERE IS A 30% CHANCE OF  
SCA LEVEL WIND GUSTS AT TIMES SUN NIGHT. OTHERWISE, SUB-ADVISORY  
CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH WED NIGHT.  
 
IN THE SANTA BARBARA CHANNEL, THERE IS A A 30%-40% CHANCE OF SCA  
EASTERLY WIND GUSTS OVER THE EASTERN PORTIONS MON NIGHT AND  
TUESDAY. OTHERWISE, SUB-ADVISORY CONDS ARE EXPECTED THRU WED  
NIGHT.  
 
IN THE SOUTHERN INNER WATERS, THERE IS A 40%-60% CHANCE OF SCA  
LEVEL NE WINDS MON NIGHT AND TUE MAINLY NEARSHORE FROM MALIBU TO  
SANTA MONICA. OTHERWISE, SCA CONDS ARE NOT EXPECTED THRU WED  
NIGHT.  
 

 
   
LOX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
CA...FREEZE WARNING IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 9 AM PST  
SATURDAY FOR ZONES 340-341-346>348-357. (SEE LAXNPWLOX).  
FIRE WEATHER WATCH IN EFFECT FROM MONDAY MORNING THROUGH  
TUESDAY EVENING FOR ZONES 288-354-355-358-362-369>380. (SEE LAXRFWLOX).  
PZ...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 3 AM PST SATURDAY FOR  
ZONES 673-676. (SEE LAXMWWLOX).  
 

 
 

 
 
PUBLIC...GOMBERG/MW  
AVIATION...LUND  
MARINE...SIRARD/SMITH  
SYNOPSIS...MW/SMITH  
 
WEATHER.GOV/LOSANGELES  
 
EXPERIMENTAL GRAPHICAL HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK AT:  
HTTPS://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/ERH/GHWO?WFO=LOX  
 
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