Tag Archives: weather

Holiday Weekend Weather Around Puget Sound: Memorial Day Looks Good

By Michael Fagin, operational meteorologist at West Coast Weather

If you’ve decided to stay home and skip the throngs of humanity traveling this holiday week-end, the weatherman has some great news for you.

A trough of low pressure will move in on Friday bringing with it a chance of some light showers most likely later in the day. Any rainfall will be light. There will be a better chance of rain late Saturday morning and in the afternoon.  Both Friday and Saturday carry with them cooler temperatures with a high of not-quite 60 degrees.

Both days give you a chance to Marie-Kondo your home for summer, then wait for it…Sunday and Monday are calling for you to get outside and play.

Sunday afternoon we are expecting mostly sunny and warmer temps with a high in the low 70’s. Monday follows Sunday’s lead with even more sunny weather and a high of 75 or possibly higher.

Bonus Hiking Info:  Although these hikes are close to the mountains, they are all currently snow-free:

Iron-Bear near Cle Elum

Oyster Dome near Bellingham

Otter Falls near North Bend

Is Summer Over?

Guest post by Meteorologist Michael Fagin of West Coast Weather

Our favorite meteorologist, Michael Fagin, has good news for this holiday weekend. Whether you’re on the fence about attending Bumbershoot in Seattle, checking out the Washington State Fair in Puyallup or just having some people over for a barbecue, the weather, and even the smoke we’ve endured lately are in your favor.

Here’s what Michael predicts:

Labor Day Weekend is usually the end of summer vacation and the conclusion of temps in the upper 80’s and low 90’s the Seattle area enjoys in August.

The good news is that this upcoming weekend will bring daytime temperatures close to the seasonal normal of 74. High temperatures for Seattle should be in the 70 to 75 range for Saturday through Monday. There’s a slight chance of drizzle Saturday morning but that is mainly for north of Seattle (near Everett). Then, on Monday a chance of some light morning showers, but afternoon should be dry.  The best day will be Sunday, which will be dry and mostly sunny in the afternoon

 

What About Smoke?

Perhaps a more important question is what will the air quality be like? We have had some extended periods of poor, unhealthy air quality this August. One reason is the smoke moving into our region from the extensive wildfires on the West Coast.

Along with all those fires, the Seattle area had periods of northeast winds that brought in smoke and even some ash from the fires in Eastern Washington. The combination of that with a strong high pressure and poor air mixing, resulted in record poor air quality for the Seattle area.

The good news is we should have good air quality this weekend. Check out this website for more details and the green colors mean “good air quality.”

However, with all the wildfires in the area, we might have some very brief periods of limited smoke moving in. Mostly, the air quality should remain in the good to moderate levels.

 

 

 

July Weather, Including the Fourth, in Seattle

Guest post by Meteorologist Michael Fagin of West Coast Weather 

credit goes to Cliff Mass

Many Seattleites are not happy with the drizzle, accompanied with temperatures in the mid 60’s, that we experienced this past weekend. The normal high temperature is 75 and the common question being asked is: When do we get summer temperatures and will it come before July 4 or after?

Beginning this coming Tuesday (July 3) and Wednesday (July 4) we will have temperatures warming up to close to normal. Will it be dry on July 4? Yes, we are expecting dry conditions for July 4. For evening viewing of the fireworks it should be partly cloudy and comfortable in the upper 50’s to low 60’s.

After July 4th, through the next weekend, temperatures will be in the upper 70’s and dry.  There are still many folks wanting 80’s and 90’s. Will that happen?

Extended forecasts from July 10 to July 16 are projecting above normal temperatures and dry conditions with some temperatures in the mid 80’s can be expected.

If you are looking for long-term summer trends this is always a good site to check out: NOAA

You can also check out Michael’s hike of the week.