The marine layer was beginning to compress. The cloud cover above the Bay Area was fading. And temperatures were expected to go up by another 3-5 degrees in most areas of the region.
Simply put, the second big heat wave of July was gaining momentum early Thursday, and upon further review, it might be a little more intense than initially forecast to be, according to the National Weather Service.
“It still looks like it’s not going to be as bad as the last one,” NWS meteorologist Rachel Kennedy said Thursday. “But when we get to next week, it might be a bit more intense than we first anticipated.”
A high-pressure ridge that was responsible for a record-breaking heat wave earlier this month is back over the region after reversing its course. Kennedy said the ridge is gaining strength and the Bay Area’s natural cooling mechanisms are losing theirs.
That will continue into Friday, which is likely to be the hottest day of this week, Kennedy said.
A heat advisory for the inland areas of the region was in effect Thursday morning and will remain in effect through Friday, according to the weather service.
“The marine layer is compressing, and it’s going to keep doing so,” Kennedy said. “We’re seeing that already. The stratus (clouds) are a lot less widespread and more patchy in nature.”
A two-day respite from the major heat is expected for the weekend, before the hottest part of this heat wave settles in next week, she said.
On Thursday, the hottest spots in the region were expected to get into the high 90s. In much of the South Bay, temperatures are expected to peak in the high 80s or low 90s. Cities along the Peninsula and the coast of the East Bay are expected to get into high 70s and San Francisco into the low 70s on Thursday.
Kennedy said there is an outside chance that some cities could top 100 degrees on Thursday, but that possibility is far more likely on Friday.
“More of those areas in the East Bay and North Bay are going to be in the upper 90s and into the 100s,” she said. “They’re gonna feel it.”
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