Southern California Weather Force has issued a Long Range Weather Watch, effective the end of May into Early June, concerning the incoming heat as like clockwork, meteorological summer starts on June 1st.
This week, week of May 18th, 2025, will see an increase in temperatures, mostly for Tuesday into Thursday for the highest with a weak upper level ridge moving through the area, after the cool-down we had the previous few days. This ridge is not the focus here at Southern California Weather Force. What will be the focus will be after it. This week’s heat is expected to be nominal for this time of year.
However, an extremely strong ridge of high pressure will form over the Southwestern United States by the end of this month, lasting into the first week of June. This ridge will be the one that will spark numerous Heat Advisories and High Heat Warnings.
This is the type of pattern to put the Kern County Valleys including Bakersfield into the 110F+ zone, the Inland Empire over 105+, and the Colorado River Valley to Imperial Valley between 115 and 122.
Southern California Weather Force models within this long range pattern do have zoom-in maps for you below so take a look at what is expected with the new heat projection from baseline, elevated, excessive, dangerous, and if needed down the line, deadly.
Heat (to zoom, right click and hit open image of some sort, or a device use your thumbs to zoom in)
Raiden Storm
Master General Meteorologist