Wednesday evening forecast July 29th

Building high pressure aloft and locally gusty northwest winds will result in very warm and dry conditions Thursday through early next week, warmest Thursday through Saturday. Heat-related illness for sensitive populations and fire weather concerns exist.  Cooling trend Sunday through Wednesday.

Low clouds and fog hugging the coast again tonight, but with the onshore flow weakening and high pressure building overhead, the marine layer should lower some and result in a little less coverage.

The heat wave is still on track. Friday still looks the hottest overall, although some Central Coast cities could be hottest on Saturday when onshore flow is the weakest there. High pressure aloft, currently centered over southeast California, will strengthen and push to the east a little through Friday, then weaken a little into Saturday.  Gusty winds are expected during this time, the southern Santa Barbara County sundowner may need a wind advisory Thursday night, either way it will increase temperatures in wind prone areas.

Daytime highs will be in the 70s to mid 80s along the coast and 90s to triple digits inland.  Heat advisories are in effect for most valleys and mountains from 11AM Thursday through 9PM Saturday.

All the reasons for the heat this week, will gradually weaken early next week as the high weakens and onshore returns. Expect Sunday to still be warmer than normal, but temperature should return to normal by Tuesday. The marine layer should also gradually expand, and be back to its more seasonal depth by Monday or Tuesday.