Los Angeles Breaks Longest August Streak Below 80 Degrees

By Jillian MacMath, AccuWeather.com Staff Writer

August 13,2013; 9:05PM,EDT

 

 

Los Angeles broke its August streak of below 80 degree temperatures Tuesday afternoon, hitting 81 degrees.
Until Tuesday afternoon, the city had experienced a stretch of cool days as of late, compared to typical August temperatures in the city.
The temperature failed to reach 80 degrees at downtown Los Angeles again on Monday, which set an all-time record for the most consecutive days to start August with highs below 80.
The normal high during the first half of August in the city is 84 degrees. As of July 13, the city is 4.6 degrees below normal for the month.
The mercury has not risen to 80 F since July 27, making this the fifth longest July through August streak of sub-80 days.
According to AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Erik Leister, the city had a great chance at passing the 80 degree mark on Tuesday.
"They have a shot at reaching 80 Tuesday, but if they don't, they will definitely end the streak of days below 80 F on Wednesday," said Leister.
"There has been a strong onshore flow for most of the month. That flow off the water keeps more low clouds in the area and also keeps the warmer air that is found farther inland away from Los Angeles," he said.
Meanwhile, just 85 miles east of Los Angeles in Banning, Calif., where the massive Silver Fire recently consumed 20,000 acres, high temperatures have been in the 90s for several days.
"Inland areas, typically, are warmer than coastal areas such as Los Angeles, but they're still running well below normal," Western Weather Expert and AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Ken Clark said.
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The jet stream has been farther south than is normal for this time of year for the past two to three weeks, according to Clark.
This has been the cause of the cooler-than-normal temperatures in the Southwest and also the Northeast, where cities from Philadelphia and northward have, at times, felt more like early fall than mid-August.
"Before the cool weather started, almost every day was above normal in Southern California, some days as high as 10 degrees above normal," Clark said.
"This time of year it's pretty uncommon to have an extended period of cooler weather, but I will tell you, I don't hear many people complaining."