Cooler-than-normal June in Sacramento area may reach history books. Here's how.
SACRAMENTO — The first day of summer begins Wednesday, but temperatures across the Sacramento Valley have felt anything but summer-like.
With highs in the 70s and 80s since the weekend, it's been a noticeable change — running about 10-15 degrees cooler than our average June high of 90 degrees.
Michael Anderson, a state climatologist with the California Department of Water Resources, said the last time we felt this cool of a start to summer was back in 2011.
"This year, we are seeing something we really haven't seen since 2011 where the March-April-May time period is noticeably cooler than it has been in any of the years in between," Anderson said.
But the cooler weather is bringing some benefits, especially to outdoor enthusiasts and even state resources. Anderson said the cooler weather is helping many keep up after a historic snow year.
"Slows that pace of melt and keeps those peaks into that manageable space allowing those reservoir operators and downstream communities to coordinate their activities and really make the best use of the water," Anderson said.
But why is it so much cooler? Well, it is all thanks to our weather pattern allowing more of an onshore flow to stay parked over the region, which allows cooler ocean air to stream inland.
This consistent pattern and cool temperature stretch are setting us up for the record books as Sacramento has yet to hit a high of 100 degrees.
With no triple digits in sight for the next few weeks, we may break a 25-year-old record.
"This could be a year where July is the first 100-degree temperature in the year, which that hasn't happened since 1998," Craig Shoemaker, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sacramento, said.
With July right around the corner, Shoemaker and Anderson said to enjoy our cooler stretch now before hotter air arrives.
"Continue to be mindful. Again, as we get into July, we will see again that warmth build again," Anderson said.