The nation’s average January-to-November temperature has increased at a rate of 0.12 degrees per decade since 1895, and at a faster rate of 0.41 degrees each decade during the last 50 years, based on more than a century’s worth of data.
While other regions face warmer-than-usual weather, local residents face unseasonably cold temperatures in Southern California that brought earlier-than-expected rain.
Officials said wet conditions could last until Wednesday and are expected to clear by Thursday, with highs near 60 degrees.
The likely culprit for the early rainy season, which does not usually begin until the end of December, is a cold front from Canada regularly blocked by a high-pressure system until the start of winter, Seto said.
That high-pressure system broke down recently, allowing a series of storms to hover above Southern California.
There is a 30% chance of rain today and a 40% chance of rain Wednesday, according to the weather service. The rest of the week should be clear, with sunny skies projected for Thursday, though low temperatures are slated to persist until the end of the week, Seto said.
