The mysterious fog hasn’t budged from California for almost a month, and meteorologists are hoping the stubborn mist vanishes by Monday, but nothing is confirmed
California is currently experiencing a strange fog which has lasted for three and a half weeks, with the mist making conditions dangerous for driving in some areas. Located in the Central Valley, the fog has appeared at about 8 pm each night since November 21, and tends to vanish after sunrise but always comes back. This only adds to the US state’s weather problems with wildfire concerns.
Meteorologists are calling it ‘tule fog’, a type of valley fog particular to California’s San Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys, which make up the Central Valley. The mist covers the area as per satellite imagery and has been doing so for a long time now.
There is hope that the fog will come to a complete stop by Monday, when a warmup of conditions may help evaporate some of the trapped moisture.
It originally formed due to the humidity becoming stuck in a valley, and California’s Central Valley is a lengthy bowl-shaped depression, which makes something like this happening probable.
The bizarre conditions began in mid-November with a wet pattern bringing a widespread 2 to 3 inches of rainfall in under a week’s time. Sacramento logged 2.59 inches during this period. In the fall and early winter, temperatures are cooler, and in the right circumstances, like the one currently happening, stagnant weather patterns can brew fog.
Strangely enough, not a drop of rain has fallen in Sacramento so far in December. That’s helped the atmosphere to dry out — even if the ground is still soggy from November’s rains.
California tends to be quite milder in weather, but the valley has remained frigid. That’s instrumental in forming fog. The cold air chills the air below its dew point, condensing the moisture in the air and resulting in thick, unshakable fog.
Meteorologists call this a dew point which describes how much moisture an air mass contains. When the dew point inches up to the temperature, it’s a sign the air is saturated — or holding as much moisture as it can. At that point, the air is at 100 percent relative humidity.
Many of the residents will be used to the fog by now, but two things could end the fog.
Either there has to be enough wind to scour the chilly temperatures, or there needs to be a warmup that can evaporate the trapped moisture.
Research from weather models suggests a subtle warmup by early next week and that, combined with modest southerly flow, could see the fog dissipate by Monday.
However, the main concern before this potentially happening is the visibility on the roads, and California’s history of fog has caused accidents with traffic pileups becoming an issue.