The first instant of autumn occurs at 2:18 Tuesday afternoon September 22nd this year. The very next day marks the start of our Kern County Fair. Funny, but not a year goes by when there isn’t at least one flourish of hot weather to coincide with that annual festival at Ming and Union.

It is not uncommon to see triple digits in Bakersfield well into September and occasionally into the middle of October. This is due, in part, to the increased occurrences of northeasterly winds that find their way into California while the first big cool snap of the year hit areas far to our east. Upper level high pressure builds in over the west and we get hot.

That is precisely what will happen early next week. A huge area of high pressure (unusually strong for late September) will develop over the Pacific Northwest and encompass all of the western United States. Santa Ana winds become common in California from September through November. These are the hot and dry northeasterly winds that can also send our temperatures soaring.

So get ready for some heat. I think we could see 4 or 5 days of triple digit weather over portions of Kern County. That would make Heat Wave #4 of 2009, should this take place. It is a fitting way to end our summer, which has not been as hot as past years. Now we look forward to an El Nino winter.