Summer arrives despite cloudy skies

Deepa Bharath

NEWPORT-MESA -- Thursday’s cloudy weather was merely a typical case of

the much-talked-about June gloom that will be whisked away by sunny

skies. Maybe not today, the first day of summer, but soon, forecasters

say.

“Yes, we had a brief visit from June gloom,” said Mark Moede,

meteorologist for the National Weather Service in San Diego. “But it’s

only temporary.”

Balmy conditions and warm ocean waters await beach lovers this summer,

he said. Moede said the overcast conditions will continue through today,

but will start clearing Saturday and through next week, bringing in

bright and beautiful sunshine and clear, blue skies.

“This summer is not going to be too different from last summer,” Moede

predicts. “The inland areas will probably be warmer than average, but the

coast should stay pretty much around the average high and low

temperatures.”

Although the last few days have been warmer than usual, this summer

may not bring sweltering heat, he said.

Talk of this year being an El Nino is valid, but will not affect

Newport-Mesa, Moede said.

“We do have an El Nino condition right now, but it’s not strong enough

to affect our weather,” he said. “We may get some showers late summer or

early fall, but right now there is no indication that that’s going to

happen.”

He added that California’s last El Nino year in 1997 brought late

summer showers.

Water temperatures are also getting up to desirable levels, Moede

said.

“[On Thursday], Newport Beach had water temperatures at about 67

degrees,” he said. “We expect it to climb to the 70s pretty soon. That’s

right about where everybody likes it.”

* Deepa Bharath covers public safety and courts. She may be reached at

(949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at o7 deepa.bharath@latimes.comf7 .