Weather tidbits -- Dennis McTighe

You’d be hard-pressed to find a day as clear as Monday.

Surface visibility all day was at least 75 miles, as even San Clemente

Island was easily visible, even at sea level. No marine layer whatsoever,

at least for now. An upper level low pressure has been parked just off

the coast near Eureka up north, keeping the state quite cool, including

our desert regions, which are only in the high 70s to low 80s.

Those modest desert readings are actually working in our favor,

nullifying the inversion layer.

Remember when it was 100 to 110 degrees out there a few weeks ago?

That’s when we were socked in with three weeks of gloom.

Last Friday’s precipitation amounted to .14 inch. Now we’re at 3.94

for the 2002-02 season. As you’ll recall, the recorded driest season was

1960-61 with 4.30 inches here and 4.85 in nearby Los Angeles. If we break

it, it will not be a record to be proud of.

Our water temps have taken yet another dive back into the 55-58 degree

zone, as stiff westerlies have been blowing at 15 to -20 mph or more for

several days now.

King Neptune, “the surf god” remains in a coma that’s lasted for three

months. There hasn’t been an overhead wave here in Laguna since Jan. 29.

The north Pacific’s season is winding down so we need the Southern

Hemisphere’s cooperation if we’re to break this prolonged flat spell.

It’s autumn south of the equator, so storms are getting stronger and

more frequent down there in the roaring 40’s belt. Mainland Mexico and

Central America have been going off for the past couple of weeks with

lots of 6- to 8- to 10-foot days lighting up places like Puerto

Escondido.

Some of that energy has been showing up here the last couple days,

producing 5-foot sets down at Lower Trestles.

Rumor has it that our beaches will see overhead southwest pulses (the

first significant southern hemisphere swell of the season) by the time

you read this. Normally, we see our first signs of life from that

hemisphere right around early May, so the time is ripe. Hopefully,

surface conditions will improve by week’s end.

Call this the “year of wind” so far. Only a dozen or so days so far

since New Year’s have had winds less than 10 mph, with more than 30% of

the days with stiff breezes in excess of 20 mph.

In just a couple of weeks from now, we can focus our attention on the

tropics, as the Eastern Pacific hurricane season begins on May 15 and

runs for six months through Nov. 15.

It’s been way below par since ‘97, so we’re hoping for a busy season

off Mexico. That all depends on whether El Nino reappears.

See you in May!