Santa is bringing me 'Wind & Waves' this Christmas! (New from Hasbro!)
SURF:
Either you've been loving or hating the surf lately; plenty of waves but lots of wind. And when it finally cleans up, the swell drops. Today we have plenty of surf again with head high sets from the NW in north county and overhead sets in SD. The OC is considerably smaller from island blockage. As far as the weekend goes, if you've been naughty or nice, it won't matter- we're getting a windy storm tonight (naughty) and waves along with it (nice).
FORECAST:
Monday still looks small with another windy weather system forecasted then the surf picks up out of the NW again on Tuesday. More head high waves for us and overhead sets in SD.
WEATHER:
Still no signs of El Nino. Last week the models were hinting tonight was the night but they've instead turned into the Grinch. The storm should arrive about the time Santa arrives and we'll get maybe 0.15" of rain out of it at the coast and LOTS of wind. The mountains should see 60 MPH gusts and 30 MPH down here at the coast. That blows through tomorrow and Saturday/Sunday sees nice weather and maybe Santa Ana offshore winds. Monday another windy but semi-dry storm moves through and we should be back to normal nice weather the 2nd half of next week. Make sure to keep up to date on the waves/weather at Twitter/North County Surf.
BEST BET:
Saturday morning with dropping head high sets from the NW and offshore 'Santa Ana' conditions. Beware the tides though!
NEWS OF THE WEEK:
Notice all the extreme high tides the past month? Over 7.5’? 7' is normal this time of year, but the predicted tides have been about a ½ foot higher. What gives? Blame it on El Nino of course. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration did a great report last week on the odd phenomenon. Curl up by the fire tonight as you wait for Santa and have a read:
Californians living on the coast may be used to seeing so-called “King Tides,” a regular phenomenon where high tides are higher than normal on certain days of the year. This winter, King Tides — known to scientists as perigean spring tides — are even higher due to El Niño, causing flooding in low-lying areas of California’s coast.
Over Thanksgiving, observed tides at several NOAA tide stations in Southern California were higher than ever measured before, even during storms, which caused minor flooding around San Diego. Californians have seen similar high water levels this week, when more King Tides occured. AND… flooding impacts are significantly worse when King Tides coincide with a coastal storm AND increased El Nino water temps.
So what gives? Let’s first start with the King Tides. These tides occur several times a year around the U.S. when the moon is either new or full (aligned with the Earth and sun) and is closest to the Earth (perigee). In California and much of the West Coast, they occur in the months closest to the winter and summer solstices. These alignments in space and time are fairly predictable, and so are King Tides.
One difference this year is the occurrence of an El Niño, which NOAA has shown to be one of the strongest on record. Put simply, when there is an El Niño, sea levels on the West Coast are generally higher due to warmer, expanded ocean waters and changing weather patterns. Tides “ride” on top of sea level and are influenced by what is happening at any given time with climate and weather. This means that normal everyday high tides are already higher because of El Niño. On days when there are King Tides, they become even higher. Another factor to consider is coastal storms and waves, which can cause an increase in water level on top of the already higher-than-normal tides. If a winter storm coincides with a King Tide event in this El Niño year, the total water levels may be extreme, and impacts may be even greater. Climate scientists predict that El Niño will peak sometime in January-February of 2016, meaning that Californians can expect these especially high tide events to last through the winter.
Because of today’s rising sea levels, sometimes all it takes is a high tide to cause flooding. Those who live, recreate, and work on the coast may be impacted when minor flooding covers roads, parking lots and sidewalks, or other infrastructure is compromised. Nearly 200,000 Californians live in coastal areas lower than 1 foot below sea level, putting homes and over 870 miles of roads at risk.
If roads are flooded, some people might not be able to easily get to work or school. That could impact California’s coastal economy, which accounts for $662 billion in wages and $1.7 trillion in GDP.
Those living along the coast may experience greater flooding impacts during storms. Residents of coastal communities should prepare when bad weather is in the forecast, by staying informed of conditions and having a severe weather plan. For more information on winter storm preparedness, visit the State of California’s Storm Ready website here: http://storms.ca.gov/
PIC OF THE WEEK:
Is this your idea of a White Christmas? Definitely not what Bing had in mind.
Keep Surfing,
Michael W. Glenn
Been Very Good This Year
Trademarked the Phrase 'Merry Christmas' And Made A Fortune
Also Trademarked 'Happy Hollow Days' (But Not Making A Lot Off That One)
