The Bay Area’s light Tuesday rain was expected to give way to a sunnier stretch, with National Weather Service meteorologist Rachel Kennedy saying the high pressure comes next. She said a warming trend should begin gradually on Wednesday, turning the page after a brief, mostly light system that moved through early in the day.
By Thursday, some of the region was expected to be in the 70s, and by Friday most of it should get there. That shift matters because Tuesday’s system was the third rain system to cross the Bay Area in the past two weeks, leaving a short window for drying before temperatures climb.
At 1 p.m. Tuesday, the North Bay had seen the most measured rain. Rain began falling in Sonoma County about 4 a.m., and the totals were modest but varied: Santa Rosa picked up three-tenths of an inch, Point Reyes a quarter-inch and Saint Helena 17-hundredths of an inch. Ben Lomond received about one-third of an inch, while Mt. Umunhum got a quarter-inch, Los Gatos 0.12 inches, Lamorinda 0.11 inches, downtown Oakland 0.04 inches and Dublin 0.02 inches. San Jose saw trace amounts.
Kennedy said most of the rain was mostly finished by Tuesday afternoon, though isolated spots could still catch some rain depending on how long the back end lingered. The coast and the rest of the region were expected to be mostly clear after Wednesday, aside from some clouds, probably until early next week.
That dry run may not last indefinitely. Kennedy said conditions in the southern waters of the Pacific Ocean could help create a long-wave low-pressure trough that could bring precipitation from the north sometime next week, but the timing and where it may happen are still unclear. For now, the immediate story is a break in the rain and a steady climb toward warmer weather, even as forecasters keep one eye on the next system.
A beach hazards statement for sneaker waves and strong rip currents was slated to expire at 8 p.m. Tuesday, and beaches were expected to calm by Tuesday night into Wednesday as the weather settles.
