{"id":142068,"date":"2026-01-20T21:02:30","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T21:02:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/142068\/"},"modified":"2026-01-20T21:02:30","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T21:02:30","slug":"severe-fog-hits-san-joaquin-valley-breaking-15-year-record-at-fresno-yosemite-airport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/142068\/","title":{"rendered":"Severe Fog Hits San Joaquin Valley, Breaking 15-Year Record at Fresno-Yosemite Airport"},"content":{"rendered":"

This past weekend brought a thick blanket of fog to the San Joaquin Valley, presenting some of the most extreme visibility conditions seen in over a decade. Fresno-Yosemite International Airport reported a staggering 1\/16th of a mile of visibility for an uninterrupted 10-hour stretch on Friday morning, a level of fog that hasn\u2019t been experienced for 15 years.<\/p>\n

Additionally, from Saturday evening until noon on Sunday, the airport recorded 20 consecutive hours of visibility at just 1\/8th of a mile. Such prolonged dense fog hasn\u2019t been witnessed since January 1962, marking a 64-year gap. For many residents, including newcomers to the area, this weather phenomenon has made a significant impression, with some noting that they have never seen fog this thick before.<\/p>\n

The unusual fog conditions can largely be attributed to a particularly wet start to the rain season, which has resulted in ample moisture on the ground. Following a series of early rainstorms that saturated the land and left standing water, high-pressure systems moved in, pushing the jet stream upward and creating clear skies. These conditions allow nighttime temperatures to drop to the dew point, causing the air to reach 100% relative humidity. The moisture condenses into fog, trapped by strong overhead high pressure that prevents air from dispersing.<\/p>\n

Geographically, the San Joaquin Valley\u2019s location\u2014surrounded by mountains on three sides\u2014means that this moist air is effectively contained, preventing wind from mixing it with drier air. As a result, the weather pattern has repeated itself, resembling the film \u201cGroundhog Day.\u201d Residents may have to wait until late January for a new storm system to disrupt the stagnant weather and mix the air.<\/p>\n

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Current forecasts suggest the fog may continue to evolve. In recent days, fog has primarily formed during the night while skies cleared during the afternoons, allowing for warmer temperatures. This pattern contrasts with early December when cloudy skies produced a prolonged period of mild fog without much temperature variation. During that time, Fresno experienced over 365 hours of temperatures lingering in the 40s, which kept fog suspended at higher altitudes.<\/p>\n

The current weather pattern, however, is driven by relatively drier air following a weak storm that swept through after the New Year\u2019s celebrations, allowing for clearer afternoon skies. Still, the moisture from the saturated ground means some level of fog is still likely. <\/p>\n

Looking ahead, predictions for the coming weeks hint at either continued thick, foggy nights following sunny afternoons or a return to the overcast gloom reminiscent of early December. The determining factor appears to be the presence of afternoon sunlight; days with more sun might lead to denser fog overnight, whereas prolonged cloudy days could establish a cooler and gloomier atmosphere.<\/p>\n

As fog season typically spans from Veterans Day to Valentine\u2019s Day, its intensity will likely diminish as spring approaches and daylight hours increase. This season\u2019s dramatic displays of fog will soon transition into clearer days, signaling the arrival of spring in the San Joaquin Valley.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This past weekend brought a thick blanket of fog to the San Joaquin Valley, presenting some of the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":142069,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[112,114,113],"class_list":{"0":"post-142068","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fresno","8":"tag-fresno","9":"tag-fresno-headlines","10":"tag-fresno-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142068","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142068"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142068\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142069"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142068"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142068"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142068"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}