Small Craft Advisory 83, NWS Eureka, CA

559 
WHUS76 KEKA 102206
MWWEKA

URGENT - MARINE WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Eureka CA
306 PM PDT Thu Aug 10 2023

PZZ475-110615-
/O.CAN.KEKA.SC.Y.0083.000000T0000Z-230812T1800Z/
/O.EXB.KEKA.SC.Y.0082.230811T1300Z-230813T2200Z/
Cape Mendocino to Pt Arena 10 to 60 nm-
306 PM PDT Thu Aug 10 2023

...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM FRIDAY TO 3 PM SUNDAY...

* WHAT...North winds 15 to 25 kt with occasional gusts to 35 kt and 
  seas 6 to 11 feet expected.

* WHERE...Cape Mendocino to Pt Arena 10 to 60 nm.

* WHEN...From 6 AM Friday to 3 PM Sunday.

* IMPACTS...Conditions will be hazardous to small craft.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Inexperienced mariners, especially those operating smaller vessels, 
should avoid navigating in hazardous conditions.

$$

PZZ470-110615-
/O.EXT.KEKA.SC.Y.0082.230811T0700Z-230812T2200Z/
/O.EXT.KEKA.GL.A.0030.230812T2200Z-230813T2200Z/
Pt St George to Cape Mendocino 10 to 60 nm-
306 PM PDT Thu Aug 10 2023

...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY NOW IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO
3 PM SATURDAY...
...GALE WATCH NOW IN EFFECT FROM SATURDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY 
AFTERNOON...

* WHAT...For the Small Craft Advisory, north winds 15 to 25 kt with
  occasional gusts to 35 kt and seas 5 to 8 feet expected. For the
  Gale Watch, north winds 20 to 30 kt with gusts to 40 kt and seas 8
  to 13 feet possible.

* WHERE...Pt St George to Cape Mendocino 10 to 60 nm.

* WHEN...For the Small Craft Advisory, from midnight tonight to 3 PM  
  Saturday. For the Gale Watch, from Saturday afternoon through 
  Sunday afternoon.

* IMPACTS...Strong winds can cause hazardous seas which could 
  capsize or damage vessels and reduce visibility.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Mariners should consider altering plans to avoid possible hazardous 
conditions. Remain in port, seek safe harbor, alter course, and/or 
secure the vessel for severe wind and seas.

$$

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION National Weather Service Eureka CA 417 AM
PDT Thu Aug 10 2023

.SYNOPSIS...Temperatures will remain near normal through Friday,
followed by above normal temperatures over the weekend and into the
middle of next week. Isolated, mostly dry thunderstorms are possible
across portions of the interior this weekend and into early next
week.

&&

.DISCUSSION...A shortwave trough over the Pacific Northwest will
dampen out through today, with mostly zonal flow developing. A cut-
off upper low will linger off the Central and Southern California
Coast through the weekend. An upper ridge is expected to build back
with a weak offshore wind component for Northwest California by the
weekend. This will allow most interior areas to heat back up, with
more dry weather.

Remnants of Tropical Storm Eugene along with some sub-tropical
monsoonal moisture will continue to spread north and east into
Northwest California over the weekend. This, along with increasing
surface temperatures, will bring destabilization across the
interior, which will favor the development of interior mountain
thunderstorms through the weekend and into very early next week.
Most of these storms will be dry and high-based, although
precipitable water values will gradually increase by early next
week. Storm motion is expected to be slow through most of the
period.

A warming trend is forecast as the offshore ridge moves over the
area and amplifies into the weekend and early next week. 850mb
temperatures over areas further east are expected to approach 25C to
30C which will make temperatures into the mid 100s certainly
possible for some interior regions of Northwest California. But,
generally high temperatures are forecast to warm into just the low
100's.The hottest days are expected from Sunday to Tuesday. ECMWF
Extreme Forecast Index (EFI) highlights a high probability of above
normal temperatures for Northwest California for this time period,
even including areas along the North Coast. Temperatures into the
low to mid 70s are expected along the North Coast. A Heat Advisory
may be needed for portions of the far interior as early as Sunday,
but, at this time, the threat appears marginal. /JLW &
/SEC

&&

.AVIATION...The satellite imagery looks very similar to last night
with widespread stratus along the coast. Ceilings have been a little
lower with LIFR dominating today and visibility even coming down to
below a half mile at times. With northerly winds expected to be
similar or slightly higher today along the coast, another chance for
a brief period of clearing is possibly during the afternoon hours
before stratus expands again this evening. Otherwise, inland areas
will see VFR throughout the day. /RPA

&&

.MARINE...Northerly winds will increase again starting today,
peaking this weekend as the thermal trough strengthens over interior
California. Models are in agreement that gale force gusts will be
likely Saturday into Sunday, especially in the outer waters north of
Cape Mendocino. The consistency between the GFS/ECMWF/NBM made it
make sense to go ahead and issue a gale watch at this time for the
northern outer waters zone. These gale force gusts may spread south
into the southern outer waters but coverage over the zone is highly
questionable at this time. The gradient from gale force northerly
gusts to southerly winds near the coast should be sharp. Seas in the
outer water zones will also be very steep as the gales develop. /RPA

&&

.FIRE WEATHER...As mentioned above, moisture is expected to surge
northward across the region this weekend into early next week. This
will aid in thunderstorm development across the interior mountains.
The threat for fire starts due to lightning will be further enhanced
by another period of above normal temperatures developing over the
weekend and into next week. Will continue to highlight this in the
FWF headlines. The ECMWF model is indicating an increased threat of
lightning strikes Monday afternoon and evening. We'll continue to
monitor for the threat of more lightning coverage. /SEC

&&

.EKA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
CA...
None.
NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA COASTAL WATERS...
     Small Craft Advisory from 1 AM Friday to 11 AM PDT Saturday
     for PZZ470.

     Gale Watch from Saturday morning through Sunday evening for
     PZZ470.

     Small Craft Advisory from 9 AM this morning to 11 AM PDT
     Saturday for PZZ475.

&&

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For forecast zone information
see the forecast zone map online:
https://www.weather.gov/images/eka/zonemap.png