First Heatwave of Summer 2016 coming this week (Phoenix, Mesa: vacation, area)

[magnum0417]

Originally Posted by :-D

How does Portland get to 99 when Tucson's high was 102 today? Just doesn't make sense.

If Phoenix gets to 120 I'll be shocked and thankful I'm a couple hours south and a little higher up. I've seen temperatures get up there and I would be ok with not seeing it again.

With the right air mass Portland can hit triple digits. Unlike Seattle there is not a large body of water to moderate when a dry hot air mass is over it. Being in a deep river valley the heat can build. Plus on the other side of the Cascades is desert. Areas like the Tri Cities and Yakima in WA approach 110 most summers.

[i'm not a cookie]

Originally Posted by BIG CATS

I think the SoCal weather is far more interesting than AZ's. Its a lot more cloudy (especially in early summer), and they get more rain as well. I wont mention the fact that its far more comfortable there as well.

Living in both climates, I think that the climate of Phoenix is definitely more interesting. Never in my life have I experienced a more monotonous climate such as that of LA. Okay it gets cloudy, but it's cloudy almost every morning till 10 then it disappears..pretty expected. In terms of the rain....this might sound weird but even the rain is boring in LA. There is no such thing as "pouring down rain" in LA and when it rains you don't hear any thunder or see any lightning, and it's usually a light rain that will last for maybe 30 mins if you are lucky. Also, LA basically has no real seasons (except for September when temps reach into the hundreds and it's hot as hell and suprisngly muggy)..for example November, April, and June all basically feel the same in LA. Although Phoenix might not have real seasons either, the temp. changes and climate changes are definitely more extreme, which is more exciting to me.

[magnum0417]

Originally Posted by i'm not a cookie

Living in both climates, I think that the climate of Phoenix is definitely more interesting. Never in my life have I experienced a more monotonous climate such as that of LA. Okay it gets cloudy, but it's cloudy almost every morning till 10 then it disappears..pretty expected. In terms of the rain....this might sound weird but even the rain is boring in LA. There is no such thing as "pouring down rain" in LA and when it rains you don't hear any thunder or see any lightning, and it's usually a light rain that will last for maybe 30 mins if you are lucky. Also, LA basically has no real seasons (except for September when temps reach into the hundreds and it's hot as hell and suprisngly muggy)..for example November, April, and June all basically feel the same in LA. Although Phoenix might not have real seasons either, the temp. changes and climate changes are definitely more extreme, which is more exciting to me.

I love the microclimates of So Cal. San Diego and El Cajon are night and day many of times when I visit. I have scraped frost off my windshield in El Cajon in the winter and have been there when it is 105. Because I love 60 and 70 degree water depending on the season I dive in year around. San Diego and LA have what I call a FOG DESERT climate as fog from the water is what keeps it green. Both cities average less annual rainfall than Tucson but the Pacific air prevents the evaporation to qualify it as a true desert.

[Renegade007]

119' in Phoenix... still 100x better than 90' in Houston.

[the topper]

Originally Posted by :-D

How does Portland get to 99 when Tucson's high was 102 today? Just doesn't make sense.

If Phoenix gets to 120 I'll be shocked and thankful I'm a couple hours south and a little higher up. I've seen temperatures get up there and I would be ok with not seeing it again.

No, I meant it feels a lot better than Portland when it does get up to 99 degrees. In July and August, Portland gets up to 99 and up to 107 degrees. I've never been there when it is 107 but been there when it was 99. You'll be hitting 114 when Phoenix is 120. That will be on Tues.

[the topper]

Originally Posted by Renegade007

119' in Phoenix... still 100x better than 90' in Houston.

And 90 in Houston is better than Portland's 90's since Houston gets southerly breezes or northerly breezes when it's over 99. Portland is so still.

[the topper]

Originally Posted by magnum0417

Being in a bowl shaped valley, the urban core of PHX does not get the benefits of wind the way higher altitudes do. You get up to 2000 ft plus like near Cave Creek and Apache Junction you have more reliable wind in the open desert so it can be had north and east of PHX.

After 12 noon, the west to winds whip right through the valley up to 20 miles an hour when the day is over 114. In the morning, you get southeast winds up to 10 miles an hour bringing the heat from old Mexico with huge high to the immediate northeast really compressing it, and the winds shift to westerly by noon or shortly after that. It caps the temps due to it coming from the ocean several hundred miles away.

[the topper]

Actually, Tuscon should max out at 116 or 117 before it cools down.

[Chelito23]

Originally Posted by the topper

After 12 noon, the west to winds whip right through the valley up to 20 miles an hour when the day is over 114. In the morning, you get southeast winds up to 10 miles an hour bringing the heat from old Mexico with huge high to the immediate northeast really compressing it, and the winds shift to westerly by noon or shortly after that. It caps the temps due to it coming from the ocean several hundred miles away.

I didn't realize the PM westerly winds made it all the way to PHX. Here in the Imperial Valley (an hour west of Yuma) we have the same wind Schedule as you. AMs can be muggy and humid with a SE breeze of the Sea of Cortez only to be replaced by variable hot winds throughout the day if any and then a late afternoon wind from the west roaring through the mountain passes bringing in cooler, but much modified ocean air.

[New Horizons]

Today is the day you all! Quite possibly it will be the hottest day of the year. We'll experience the desert in its purest most raw energy.