Super Bowl 50 Forecast

Will the Broncos be battling inclement weather in addition to Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50? We provide a brief forecast for tomorrow’s Big Game in Santa Clara, California.

Sunny California isn’t that sunny…

At least in February. It is actually one of northern California’s rainiest months, falling smack in the middle of the wet season.

Over the last two months, storm after storm has bombarded northern California with copious amounts of rain and mountain snow. Most of the snow events that brought only a few snowflakes across the Front Range Plains indeed passed through NoCal on their way here. The impact was much more significant for them…

Northern California total precipitation over the last 30 days. Many areas are in excess of 10 inches (or rain).

Fortunately, Mother Nature will give Peyton his best shot to go out as a winner. The weather pattern has just taken a drier turn, with a high-amplitude ridge building across the West Coast as we speak. In fact, this is the most significant ridge to come ashore in the last two months. By kickoff time, California will be at the core of the upper-level high.

GFS 500mb vorticity map, valid Sunday evening.

Here is the 700mb relative humidity map. Nada over California. This indicates clear skies for the duration of the game.

With clear skies, offshore flow, and the ridge in place, temperatures will warm to near record levels across the Bay Area on Sunday. Model guidance suggests afternoon temperatures in the low to mid 70’s. For reference, the average high at the nearby San Jose airport on February 7th is 62 degrees, with a record high of 76 degrees.

Kickoff temperature will likely be in the low 70’s, falling into the low 60’s by the end of the game. Perfect football weather!

Back to CO

Under dry, northwest flow, seasonal and sunny conditions will dominate the next few days across northeast Colorado. Look for highs in the 40’s Sunday with abundant sunshine. That warm weather in California is on tap for Colorado by mid-week. More on this warming trend in upcoming Week Ahead forecast.

Let’s go Broncos!

Ben Castellani

Ben grew up in southwestern Pennsylvania and holds both a bachelor's and a master's degree in Meteorology, the latter being from CU Boulder. His hometown received nearly three feet of snow from the Storm of the Century back in March of 1993, sparking his initial interest in impactful weather. Ben currently works on remote sensing and data analysis software at L3Harris Technologies in Boulder.