It's the first day of summer - the summer solstice - and temperatures will be appropriately hot.
A one-day heat wave is expected to bring temperatures of around 96 degrees today in the Sacramento region. The prevailing high pressure system is expected to be kicked aside after today as low pressure exerts its influence and the delta breeze returns on Thursday.
On Thursday, temperatures are forecast to be about 10 degrees below normal. Mild weather is expected to continue through the weekend with daytime maximum temperatures in the upper 70s.
According to the Farmer's Almanac, the timing of the solstice depend on when the sun reaches its farthest point north of the equator.
The summer solstice is the longest day of the year, but not necessarily the hottest. Temperature is affected by atmosphere, land and oceans absorbing part of the Sun's rays and releasing it at various rates, according to the Almanac.
The sun is higher in the sky throughout the day in temperate regions, its rays striking the planet at a more direct angle. In the winter, the opposite happens, the sun being low in the sky and the rays striking at an oblique angle, according to the Almanac.
The detailed, 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:
Today: Sunny and hot, with a high near 96. Calm wind becoming west northwest between 5 and 8 mph.
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 56. Southwest wind between 7 and 10 mph.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 80. South southwest wind between 13 and 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Thursday night: Increasing clouds, with a low around 55. South southwest wind between 13 and 16 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.
Friday: Partly sunny, with a high near 79. South southwest wind around 9 mph.
Friday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 55.
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 77.
Saturday night: Mostly clear, with a low around 53.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 79.
Sunday night: Clear, with a low around 53.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 80.
Monday night: Clear, with a low around 55.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 85.
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