I’m forecasting the weather for the Coachella Valley at KMIR. The physics of weather are the same, but there are different tools to use.
Satellite imagery is a lot more important here. Anything coming from the Pacific is out of radar range nearly all the way to the coast.
I’ve been looking at a plume of moisture from north of Hawaii curving up the Pacific then back down the West Coast. It’s the big weekend weather maker for SoCal. The only way to see it is from the bird.
Saturday, while it’s raining in LA and San Diego, there will be partly cloudy skies over Palm Springs with a few sprinkles. We are protected by steep mountains, some over 11,000 feet tall.
On Sunday the moisture heads in from the south. No protection there! That’s when we get the bulk of our rain.
Some computer models show around an inch of rain in Palm Springs by Monday morning. That’s a lot in a place that floods easily. I spent time tonight explaining ‘washes’ to the tourists and snowbirds watching.
On top of the rain we’ve got wind for Saturday and as much as a foot and a half of snow in some mountain locations.
Who said I’d be bored forecasting here?
The boss wanted my hair shorter. Fine. Joseph does a lot of TV people in LA and spends weekends in Palm Springs. Looks good… and short.
My first day on KMIR was Thursday. I purposely kept the streaming link to myself. Who knew how the first shows would go? Now that I’ve eased in, feel free to peep.