Cloudy skies over San Diego early Tuesday are expected to give way to sunshine and a high near 78 degrees. North winds should generally remain between 0 and 10 mph, with occasional gusts reaching 20 mph.
Partly cloudy conditions are forecast Tuesday night, with a low near 67 degrees. Low clouds may redevelop along the coast late Tuesday and spread into nearby coastal neighborhoods overnight, potentially producing another gray start Wednesday. The timing and extent of that redevelopment remain conditional in the forecast.
Warmup peaks Saturday
Wednesday and Thursday are expected to be mostly sunny with highs near 79 degrees, followed by a high around 81 Friday. Saturday is forecast to be the warmest day of the stretch, with mostly sunny skies and a high near 85 degrees.
The broader regional forecast includes a slight chance of showers or thunderstorms in the mountains Thursday afternoon. No watches, warnings or advisories are in effect for the San Diego area.
Why nearby areas can forecast differently
A dry city forecast does not necessarily apply across the entire county. The National Weather Service notes that temperatures can vary substantially over short distances in San Diego County, with nearby valleys generally warmer in summer and cooler at night than the city. It also says rainfall generally increases with elevation and distance from the coast, helping explain why mountain precipitation prospects can differ from those in San Diego’s lower coastal areas.
The coastal cloud possibility also fits a documented local weather mechanism, without proving how extensive Tuesday night’s clouds will be. NOAA explains that stronger downward motion associated with upper-level high pressure can compress the marine layer toward the coast while allowing inland temperatures to run higher as skies clear. For this forecast period, that means coastal cloud redevelopment and sunny, warmer conditions farther inland can coexist; the forecast itself does not establish the exact boundary or duration.
