Arctic air remains in the wake of the recent storm system and the strong cold front of this past Tuesday. The airmass has finally begun to modify as an upper-level ridge continues to build overtop. This evolving pattern will dominate our weather for the next several days (into the middle of next week) yielding nice bluebird skies and daytime temperatures rebounding gradually over the period. Evenings will be very cold with intense morning inversions in the Crowley Lk and June Lake areas. Higher elevations should be pleasant from mid-late morning through the day and will be an escape from the morning inversions in low lying areas. Air temperatures this morning are in the 20's above 9,000 ft in the Mammoth Basin while low lying areas such as Devils Postpile and June Lake are in the low teens or single digits.
Northeast winds will continue to blow over the high ridges but instead of the sustained 80-100 mph northeast winds earlier in the week, sedate breezes 10 to 15 mph, gusting to 25 mph will continue today. By Sunday as the ridge builds and amplifies, winds will be from the west. Temperatures at the 10,000 to 11,000 ft elevations will reach the mid 40's on Sunday and hit 50F by Tuesday.
The only hope for precipitation occurs when the ridge builds to such high amplitude that it pinches off and a storm can sneak in under the ridge.