NorCal To Warm Up As CA Braces For Heatwave

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — After a particularly chilly start to summer, the sunshine is expected to make an appearance this week, finally. While many parts of the state will experience a blistering heat wave, the coastal Bay Area will enjoy a warm-up.

California's heat wave is set to begin Wednesday and last through the weekend, according to the National Weather Service.

In the Bay Area, daytime highs are expected to inch up 3 to 5 degrees during this time, but inland areas are likely to experience a moderate heat wave.

While temperatures will stay in the mid-60s and 70s along the coastal areas, inland communities are expected to soar into the 90s and even crack 100 in some places, forecasters said this week.

"Satellite imagery shows mostly clear skies throughout the region with patchy stratus developing near Point Reyes and the western coast of the San Mateo Peninsula," meteorologists said on Tuesday. "Today marks the start of a gradual warming trend across the region that should dominate the weather pattern for the rest of the week."

Gusty winds are also expected to "relax towards a more typical summertime breeze," forecasters added.

The warming trend isn't expected to trigger a major heat warning, but forecasters and health agencies will likely be urging residents to be aware of heat-related illnesses for vulnerable populations, including children, older adults, pregnant women and people working outdoors.

The NWS warns of "moderate" heat risk from Friday through Sunday across the interior valleys of the East and South Bays.

See the Friday forecast across the Bay Area:

• San Francisco: 72 degrees
• Alameda: 77 degrees
• Berkeley: 74 degrees
• San Rafael: 84 degrees
• Novato: 86 degrees
• Mountain View: 84 degrees
• Petaluma: 86 degrees
• Napa: 85 degrees
• Healdsburg: 91 degrees
• Pleasanton: 92 degrees
• Livermore: 94 degrees

Meanwhile, smoke from a wildfire that has charred nearly 70,000 acres in San Luis Obispo County has hampered the air quality all over Southern California. But for now, the Bay Area appears to be unaffected.

"There are wildfires around the state producing smoke, but latest smoke modeling guidance keeps smoke outside of the Bay Area," the NWS said Tuesday.

The news of sunnier weather comes after forecasters dubbed last month "No Sky July," since San Francisco and many other Bay Area cities experienced their coldest summer in decades.

In downtown San Francisco, the weather service measured the city's coldest half of a summer since 1982. Meanwhile, across the Bay Bridge, Oakland is experiencing its coldest summer since 1970 — the coldest on record for the city.

"We’re looking anywhere from 20 to 30 years since we’ve had this cold of a summer,” Matt Mehle, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, told the LA Times.

Last week, the National Weather Service said the San Francisco International Airport recorded its coldest start to the summer since 1965.

The Bay Area office of the National Weather Service offered a cheeky contrast to a post from NWS Phoenix last week, which reported a sweltering 113 degrees at Sky Harbor Airport — 7 degrees above average. “San Francisco Downtown hit 66 degrees today,” the Bay Area office quipped.

READ MORE: 'No Sky July': The Bay Area Is Experiencing Its Coldest Summer In Decades