Time to say bye to the rain? Sacramento could warm up to the 70s by the weekend
After weeks of stormy weather throughout Northern California with only a handful of short breaks, a mostly dry week is finally here.
The latest National Weather Service forecast shows a weak system will bring light rain to the Sacramento Valley on Tuesday, but Monday and the remainder of the week are expected to be dry with high temperatures rising to the upper 60s in some areas.
Sacramento’s forecast shows those showers may miss Sacramento, meaning a whole week of sunny weather.
And the sun will be in the sky an hour later into the evening after Sunday’s daylight saving time change.
How warm will Sacramento be?
Preliminary NWS forecasts show Sacramento gradually warming up through the week, with a high of 71 anticipated by Sunday.
Sacramento could see some wind Wednesday, with gusts as high as 21 mph possible as well.
The story is similar across the valley and foothills, where high temperatures will range from the upper 50s to high 60s through Friday, warming up as the week goes on.
Weekend hail
Thunderstorms Sunday evening brought a brief but strong bout of hail to Sacramento, as well as frequent lightning strikes for less than an hour.
Heavy rain fell briefly as well, but precipitation totals measured less than one-tenth of an inch in most parts of Sacramento, NWS observed.
What about the snow?
Showers are expected to drop less than 2 inches of snow during Tuesday’s weak system. Those snow showers will end by about Tuesday evening.
Snow levels will be between 3,500 to 4,000 feet Tuesday morning and 4,000 to 4,500 feet that afternoon and evening.
Small traffic delays for those traveling through the Sierra Nevada are possible, as well as chain controls in some areas, but travel impacts are not anticipated.
No chain controls were in place on Interstate 80 as of Monday morning, according to California Highway Patrol and Caltrans.
This story was originally published March 11, 2019 at 7:41 AM.
