The Central Coast is experiencing a significant drop in temperatures today, and this cooling trend will continue through the week.
Expect gusty coastal winds this afternoon and evening. Temperatures will fall further on Tuesday, with the possibility of drizzle. Cooler conditions are set to last through the weekend, accompanied by low clouds and fog pushing back into the valleys.
A Wind Advisory has been extended across southern Santa Barbara County, including coastal sections, for this afternoon into the early evening. The advisory highlights the potential for gusty winds.
As a trough moves in, low clouds, and strong onshore flow are all contributing to a decrease in maximum temperatures today by 5 to 10 degrees along the coast and 10 to 20 degrees further inland.
Today's highs will mostly end up in the 60s along the coast and lower to mid 70s in the valleys, which is 3 to 6 degrees below normal. The strong onshore push will generate gusty winds in the 25 to 40 mph range across many coastal and interior areas this evening.
A fairly sharp but also quite dry trough will move over the area on Tuesday.
The biggest precipitation threat from this trough will be drizzle as it interacts with a deep marine layer, but there will be a slight chance of showers over the higher peaks and our modeling suggests we have to watch for perhaps some isolated convection drifting into the area.
The marine layer will lift, and stratus will likely cover all of the coasts and valleys. Clearing will be slow, with many coastal areas remaining cloudy throughout the day. An additional cooling of 2 to 4 degrees will bring almost all maximum temperatures down into the 60s. Advisory-level gusts are possible.
Wednesday will bring less dramatic weather. Morning marine layer clouds will cover much of the coasts and valleys, but offshore trends will allow for much faster and better clearing. More sunshine and weaker onshore flow will combine to bring 3 to 6 degrees of warming to most areas. Maximum temperatures, however, will still come in 2 to 5 degrees below normal.
Looking ahead to Thursday through Sunday, moderate onshore flow at the surface is expected. May Gray conditions will likely continue with night through morning low clouds, but good clearing is anticipated for most areas.
Temperatures are not expected to change too much and will remain 2 to 4 degrees below normal.
