The wet, windy and cold weather the county experienced the past five days will begin to turn warm and dry Saturday and will be “almost summer-like” by early next week, says Chandler Price, a forecaster at the National Weather Service.
A high-pressure system will form and prevent big storms from dropping into Southern California. Skies should remain mostly clear through Feb. 28, when at least six planets will align in the sky shortly after sunset, a phenomenon that should be visible countywide.
Temperatures will trend upward.
San Diego’s daytime high temperature is forecast to be 67 on Saturday, 69 on Sunday, 71 on Monday, 73 on Tuesday, 72 on Wednesday and Thursday and 74 on Friday, forecasters say. The seasonal high is 66.
Escondido’s daytime high is expected to be 70 on Saturday, rise to the mid-70s through the week and reach 80 on Friday. The seasonal high is about 67.
The respite from the rain represents good news. It will provide time for runoff to sink into the ground, triggering the growth of fresh vegetation in the backcountry, reducing the threat of wildfires. It also could lead to a super bloom of flowers in places like Anza Borrego Desert State Park.
The break in the rain will dry up soggy Little League baseball fields from one end of the county to another. This is an especially big deal for the Clairemont Hilltoppers, who want good conditions when they celebrate their 70th anniversary at Cadman Park on Feb. 28.
This week’s rain and snow didn’t fall in an easily predictable way. Winter storms usually move from the northwest to the southeast, which usually means Oceanside gets soaked. It did get 1.40 inches over the five days. But it would have been no surprise if the number had been twice as high. Apparently, some of the biggest storm cells missed the area.
San Diego’s 1.57 inches of rain from the weeklong storm system is something to celebrate. The city has now received 9.62 inches of precipitation since the rainy season began on Oct. 1. It averages 9.79 inches for the entire season and will almost certainly end up with above-average rain.