Stockton burned its way into the record books this week.
The city marked the 41st day of temperatures that topped 100 degrees, melting the previous record of 40 days set in 2022, the National Weather Service reports.
Stockton broke the latest heat series Tuesday. And while thermometer readings have eased a bit since, forecasters say there’s a reasonable chance more triple-digit temperatures could be ahead.
The mercury is expected to peak at 88 degrees Thursday before jumping to 94 on Friday, the weather service reports. Early next week, the temperatures are expected to climb even further, with highs on Monday and Tuesday in the mid- to high 90s.
“We have been stuck with a really strong high-pressure system,” meteorologist Craig Shoemaker with the weather service’s Sacramento office said. “And we haven’t gotten a lot of high-pressure flow to bring in cool air from the Pacific.”
As Stocktonia’s Michael Fitzgerald reported earlier this month, the summer was a scorcher ready-made for the record books.
Shoemaker said the average summer high temperature was 79.5 degrees in Stockton, breaking a record set in 1961 of 79.1 degrees. The hottest days were July 6 and 11. On both days, the temperature soared to 111 degrees.
“July is what really pushed a lot of these all-time records,” Shoemaker said.
And even with the debut of fall, which began this week, summer-like temperatures have not yet dropped.
The weather service warns there is a moderate heat risk in the area, beginning tomorrow and extending through Tuesday. Temperatures are expected to be 5 to 10 degrees hotter than normal for this time of year.
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