By Reginald Stanley. Posted March 2, 2021, 7:19 PM.

The seemingly endless dry, sunny, windy pattern that has taken hold of Southern California since the end of January will be interrupted this week as a Pacific trough brings subtropical moisture into the region, along with potential thunderstorms Wednesday afternoon.

Currently, the storm track favors San Diego County for greatest amounts of precipitation, while lesser amounts are expected to the north. For the inland valleys and coasts, between 0.25 and 0.5 inches is forecast through the end of Wednesday. Locally higher amounts could fall in parts of San Diego, while smaller totals are expected to the north around Los Angeles and surrounding areas. There is significant potential for instability associated with the storm Wednesday afternoon, allowing for a chance of thunderstorms over the region through Wednesday evening. Snow levels are expected to remain around 5,000 feet above sea level, while precipitation is forecast to end late Wednesday night. Residual moisture could linger in the mountains Thursday, before a high pressure ridge brings dry, warmer weather for Friday.

An additional trough could bring chances for light precipitation on Saturday, although amounts are expected to be light. Further chances of rain could occur next week as two shortwave troughs impact the region, however timing and intensity are uncertain at this time.