WindDoll

Conditions for windsurfing in Berkeley were warm yesterday: 61 degrees Fahrenheit (16 Celsius) instead of our usual summer 57 (14). Woohoo!

This is snipped from NOAA area forecast discussion this morning. (NOAA is the U.S. National Weather Service.)

SEVERAL DAYS OF LIGHT SOUTHERLY FLOW OVER THE
COASTAL WATERS…AND THE RESULTANT LACK OF UPWELLING…HAVE ALLOWED
SEA SURFACE TEMPERATURES OFF OUR COAST TO WARM INTO THE UPPER 50S
AND LOWER 60S. THESE WARMER WATER TEMPS WILL HELP HOLD MINIMUM
TEMPERATURES UP A FEW DEGREES AT NIGHT AND ALSO GIVE COASTAL
DAYTIME TEMPS A SLIGHT BOOST.

Usually the wind blows northwest down the coast and pushes the water against the land so that the water piles up and turns over, causing the colder water from the depths to roll to the surface and chill us out with “fog.” I put fog in quotes because Berkeley fog is above ground 500 to 1,000 feet. It’s rare—maybe ten times a year—that we get real fog on the ground.