Stormy Days Continue

Moisture-rich subtropical air continues streaming in across the central portion of the state – with the Bay Area sitting on the upper fringe of this plume – meaning the heaviest rain totals today will likely fall again across the Santa Cruz mountains. The coastal mountains remain a perfect zone for impressive rainfall totals as a strong SSW flow hits these mountains, air rises/condenses and drops several inches of rain. Inland totals should be somewhat lighter mainly in the .50″ to 1″ range from now through Tuesday. Cooler air aloft and upper level winds are supporting a chance for off/on thundershowers as well especially along the coast and portions of the Bay Area through the day. The rain will stay somewhat showery with some sun mixed in into Tuesday before another round of widespread rain arrives later Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. For Thursday and Friday, we should catch a brief break from the storms with patchy thick morning fog being the main travel concern. Rain however will return again for the weekend with increasing rain/wind likely during Christmas Day with more showers into Sunday. There still is no real sign of the jet stream moving northward away from California all the way through the first week of January which means opportunities for rain will likely continue for awhile. – Rob Mayeda