PHOENIX — A storm system will move in from the northwest this week bringing high winds, cooler air and even chances for rain and snow across our state.
The first change will be the increase in winds.
It will get breezy here in the Valley and windy across much of the rest of the state throughout the day on Tuesday.
Look for peak gusts near 30 mph in the Phoenix metro area with gusts near 50 mph in northern and southeastern Arizona.
Widespread blowing dust is going to be possible across our open deserts. That will lead to an increase in particle pollution across Maricopa county, so the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality has issued a High Pollution Advisory for Tuesday. Limit time outside in the afternoon or you may have difficulty breathing.
Wind Advisories are in effect Tuesday for most of western, northern and eastern Arizona. That's where the strongest winds will be. Watch out for gusts near 50 mph in many of these areas.
Red Flag Warnings (also known as Fire Weather Warnings) are in effect across southeastern Arizona on Tuesday as winds pick up and conditions stay dry.
Those winds will usher in some much cooler air, dropping temperatures 10 to 20 degrees across our state.
Here in the Valley, highs will drop into the low 60s by Wednesday with early morning lows in the 40s.
There's a slight chance we could see a few spotty showers late Tuesday night through Wednesday morning here, too.
Any showers we get in the Valley will be light with rainfall accumulations of less than a tenth of an inch.
Up north, the snow level will drop to 4,500 feet. Snowfall accumulations will likely be less than an inch between 4,500 feet and 7,000 feet in elevation.
For areas above 7,000 feet, there's a chance for one to three inches of snowfall Tuesday night through early Thursday morning.
We'll dry back out again by the end of the week as temperatures start to rebound across our state.
Here in Phoenix, look for highs in the low 70s again by Friday and mid to upper 70s over the weekend.
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2022 Rainfall totals:
Sky Harbor Official Rainfall: 0.12" (-1.12" from average)
Valley Average (Phoenix Rainfall Index): 0.15"
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2021 Rainfall totals:
Sky Harbor Official Rainfall: 5.58" (-1.01" from average)
Valley Average (Phoenix Rainfall Index): 7.16"
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Daily rainfall reports from all across the Valley can be found here.
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PHOENIX IS GETTING DRIER - LOWER RAINFALL AVERAGES NOW
Average Monsoon Rainfall in Phoenix (1981-2010): 2.71" of rain
NEW Average Monsoon Rainfall in Phoenix (1991-2020): 2.43" of rain
Average Yearly Rainfall in Phoenix (1981-2010): 8:03" of rain
NEW Average Yearly Rainfall in Phoenix (1991-2020): 7.22" of rain
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