862 FXUS66 KHNX 162301 AFDHNXArea Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Hanford CA 401 PM PDT Tue Sep 16 2025
.KEY MESSAGES... 1. Minor chances (less than 30 percent) to exceed 100 degrees Tuesday and Wednesday for localized areas of the San Joaquin Valley and Mojave Desert. Temperatures will cool Thursday into the weekend.
2. Smoke will continue to linger as the Garnet Fire continues to burn but with improving conditions; smoke will not be as thick or widespread as in previous weeks.
3. Chance for showers an thunderstorms late this week as tropical moisture tracks over the region from the south. Thursday will bring the greatest chances for storms at 15 to 25 percent, however there is a chance for storms as early as Wednesday afternoon that may result in dry lightning.
4. There is a Marginal Risk (5 to 15 percent) for Excessive Rainfall leading to flash flooding on Thursday for Kern County, the Sierra Nevada up to Yosemite, and the West Side Hills up to the borders of Kings, Kern, and San Luis Obispo counties. There is also a Marginal Risk on Friday in the Sierra Nevada extending from Yosemite National Park to Sequoia National Park.
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.DISCUSSION... Today will be the warmest day of the week as the ridge of high pressure continues to dominate. However, the high temperatures will remain close tomorrow but moisture from the Mario off the Baja coast could trigger some dry thunderstorms.
On Thursday, the ridge begins to tilt its axis towards the northeast as it moves east allowing the remnants of Mario to move closer to California. Thunderstorm chances increasing to 15 to 25 percent for Kern County and 5 to 15 percent across much of the Sierra Nevada and the west side of Kern County. Rain chances increase on Friday as there is a 25 to 40 percent probability of a quarter inch or more of rain in many Valley locations. There is a 5 percent chance of thunderstorms in the Valley and a 10 to 20 percent chance from eastern Kern County stretching all the way up to Yosemite on Friday. This has led to the Sierra Nevada being under a marginal risk of Excessive Rainfall on Thursday and Friday along with the west side hills of Kern County on Thursday.
Thunderstorm chances and overall rain chances decrease on Saturday as a ridge develops over the Sonoran desert and whatever is left of Mario moves northwest. THe valley has a 10 to 25 percent chance of a tenth of an inch of rain on Saturday and there is a 5 to 10 percent chance of thunderstorms in the Sierra Nevada for Saturday. The moisture should help reduce the fire risk including helping with the Garnet Fire. Smoke should not be too much of a concern with this approaching system as the air gets mixed.
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.AVIATION... 00Z Update:
VFR conditions will prevail across the Central California Interior for the next 24 hours. Areas of Dense Smoke aloft along the Sierra Nevada over eastern Fresno County and nearby counties from the Garnet Fire may impact visibility.
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.AIR QUALITY ISSUES... None.
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.CERTAINTY...
The level of certainty for days 1 and 2 is high. The level of certainty for days 3 through 7 is medium.
Certainty levels include low...medium...and high. Please visit www.weather.gov/hnx/certainty.html for additional information and/or to provide feedback.
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.HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... None.
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public...JPK aviation....Molina
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NWS HNX Office Area Forecast Discussion