SURF: After the tsunami mess up and down the coast last Friday the ocean dusted itself off and starting churning out real waves again. Tuesday saw some overhead+ waves from the NW with only a slight drop on Wednesday. Thursday the machine cranked back up again with more overhead+ waves. Today we have a slight drop again from the NW with head high sets in north county SD/OC, a foot overhead in south county SD, and about chest high in south OC.
Twitter/North County Surf.
FORECAST:
And the hits keep on coming. After another firing weekend of NW swell, we're due for another solid NW on Monday- similar to the swells we've had all week- look for it to be a few feet overhead in south county SD, overhead in north county SD/OC, and about chest high in south county OC. Unfortunately a cold front will be overhead on Monday so expect junky W winds in the morning followed by strong NW winds in the afternoon. After the wind/weather roll through, we have a drop in size Tuesday afternoon and clearing conditions. Models then show yet another solid NW arriving Wednesday afternoon and peaking Thursday. Spring officially starts on Sunday but by the way the north Pacific has been acting, you'd think it was still winter next week. We also will have some small background SW during the upcoming week but the NW will pretty much be in charge and it won't be noticeable. Maybe southern OC will see a little waist high bump out of it since the NW won't be as pronounced in that region.
WEATHER: Winter doesn't want to end. We're officially at our average rainfall total for the year in SD (slightly more in the OC) so if there was no more rain for the rest of the season (which ends June 30th), we'd be right on track. But we need the rain of course due to years worth of drought, so we'll take a drenching in the springtime. We've got cool low clouds this morning that should break up to hazy sunshine later today. Saturday a weak front moves through for a chance of sprinkles.
BEST BET:
Tough one here- today looks fun even though it's smaller- but more beaches can handle the size. Or wait until tomorrow afternoon when that new solid NW arrives and the reefs fire at the low tide. Or sit on your butt, watch March Madness this weekend, and just wait for another good NW next Wednesday with sunny conditions. It's good to have choices.
NEWS OF THE WEEK:
The Vernal Equinox is almost here! Hurray! What the heck is the Vernal Equinox you ask? We'll it's the official start of spring of course, happening this Sunday, March 20th. Our friends at answers.com can shed a little light on the subject: Every year the earth goes once around the Sun; that is, after all, the definition of a year. The earth spins on its axis, and the axis happens to be tilted about 23.5 degrees relative to earth's orbital plane. As a result, sometimes the northern hemisphere is tilted toward the sun and sometimes the southern hemisphere tilts toward the sun. The change isn't severe, but it is enough to cause the seasons. When the north is tilting toward the sun we generally experience warmer weather in the north. When the south is tilted toward the sun then the southern hemisphere generally experiences the warmer weather. (The actual distance from the earth to the sun is not the cause of the seasons. People in the north sometimes find it hard to believe that during the northern winter, the earth is actually a little closer to the sun than it is during the northern summer.) As the earth revolves around the sun there are two moments (not whole days) of the year when the sun is exactly above the equator. At these times neither pole tilts toward the sun. These moments are called "equinoxes". One occurs in March as the northern hemisphere starts to tilt toward the sun. In the north, that equinox is called the "vernal, or spring equinox", the beginning of spring. The other, in September, is the autumnal equinox and is the first day of fall (autumn). In the southern hemisphere, the March equinox is autumnal, and the September equinox is vernal. Around the time of either equinox [equal-night] the daylight period of the day is close to the same length of time as the night time period. The term Vernal Equinox has another meaning in astronomy. It refers to the point in the heavens which is the location of the sun at the moment of the northern vernal equinox. This point is useful as an astronomical marker, but because of something called 'precession' it moves very slowly. At one time this point was called the "First Point of Aries", because it was located just over the boundary of the constellation Aries. So what does spring really mean for us? Well we should see the storm track start to lift with storms producing just showers from fast moving fronts- not steady rain. With the fast moving fronts and lifting storm track, expect less NW groundswells and more WNW windswells. The southern hemi also starts to kick into gear and the best SW of the seasons will occur. Our La Nina is also waning so expect temps to be on the rise in the atmosphere and in our waters. Hopefully less fog than last summer too. So crack a cold one this weekend out of respect for the Vernal Equinox.
BEST OF THE BLOG:
With the recent earthquake in Japan, that makes 3 corners of the Pacific having major quakes in the past year. Guess where the nervous 4th corner is? C'mon, take a guess. Give up? Then you'd better check out the blog below titled 'Earthquakes and Us.' And make sure to click on the earthquake preparedness link...
PIC OF THE WEEK:
Keep Surfing,
Michael W. Glenn
Handsome Devil
Diagnosed With March Madness
Always Trunking It
