Weather StoryAlmanac, microseasons, and the day's weather story.

Weather in Palo Alto, California

Fog and sun in daily rhythm. Day 59 of spring. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →

Palo Alto, CA
Sunday, May 17 at 3:52 AM
58
°
Mostly Clear
Feels like
55°
Humidity
54%
Wind
4 mph
Sunrise
5:58 AM
Sunset
8:11 PM
Palo Alto, CA
Hour by hour · 24h
65°
8p
61°
9p
58°
10p
57°
11p
55°
12a
55°
1a
54°
2a
54°
3a
53°
4a
51°
5a
50°
6a
53°
7a
58°
8a
62°
9a
67°
10a
72°
11a
74°
12p
77°
1p
81°
2p
78°
3p
76°
4p
75°
5p
74°
6p
71°
7p
L 50°H 81°
Palo Alto, CA
7-day forecast
  1. Today
    May 16
    Mostly Clear
    73°51°
  2. Sunday
    May 17
    Overcast
    74°48°
  3. Monday
    May 18
    Overcast
    81°56°
  4. Tuesday
    May 19
    Clear
    86°57°
  5. Wednesday
    May 20
    Overcast
    87°60°
  6. Thursday
    May 21
    Overcast
    84°59°
  7. Friday
    May 22
    Partly Cloudy
    82°59°
Palo Alto, CA
Anemometer · 24h winds · from true
NESW
From · True
NW
315° · veering 14°
Direction
NW
315°
Sustained
4
mph
Gust
10
mph
Peak 24h
19
avg 7
Beaufort · 2 · LIGHT BRZ
0
CALM
<1
1
LIGHT AIR
1–3
2
LIGHT BRZ
4–7
3
GENTLE BRZ
8–12
4
MOD BRZ
13–18
5
FRESH BRZ
19–24
6
STRONG BRZ
25–31
7
NEAR GALE
32–38
24h · sust vs gust · mph
avg 7 · pk 19 @ 8:00a
−24h−18h−12h−6hnow
Light breeze veering 14° from the nw.
Palo Alto, CA
Barometer · 24h pressure · mb
STORMRAINCHANGEFAIRDRY9901000101010201030
Pressure · mb
1005.6
+0.2 mb in 3h · falling · 29.70 inHg
Now
1005.6
mb
3h
+0.2
mb
12h
-2.0
mb
24h
-2.2
mb
Regime · RAIN
STORM
RAIN
CHANGE
FAIR
DRY
24h · Pressure · mb
range 10041009
−24h−18h−12h−6hnow
Damp, unsettled regime — wet weather lingers nearby.
Palo Alto, CA
Air quality
43
AQI
Good
PM 2.5
9.6 μg/m³
PM 10
15.0 μg/m³
NO₂
3.0 μg/m³
Ozone
81.0 μg/m³
UV Index
0.0 Low
Palo Alto, CA
Almanac · Sunday, May 17
When the dew is on the grass, rain will never come to pass.
Civil dawn
12:30 PM
Sunrise
5:58 AM
Daylight
14h 13m
Sunset
8:11 PM
Civil dusk
3:41 AM
Planting note
Direct sow okra, melons, and southern peas. Thin carrot rows.
Palo Alto, CA
The moon
New Moon
0% illuminated
Moonrise
1:12 PM
Moonset
3:45 AM
In sign
♊︎ Gemini
Palo Alto, CA
Microseason · 28 of 72
May 16–20

Fog and sun in daily rhythm

plant
Jan 137% of the yearDec 31

Read this microseason across nine climate regions →

Palo Alto at a glance

  • Today vs. normal: 16°F below the seasonal normal for this latitude
  • Last frost: March 31 (climatological average for this latitude)
  • Microseason: 28 of 72, May 16–20
  • Planting window: Direct sow okra, melons, and southern peas. Thin carrot rows.

Right now in the garden

Warm-season window is open

As of May 17, the last spring frost has passed for most years. Transplant tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, basil, and cucurbits (cucumbers, squash, melons) now. Direct-sow beans and corn into warm soil.

ZIP codes in Palo Alto

Climate normals from the Open-Meteo Climate API. Köppen approximation from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Regions. See methodology for data sources, editorial rules, and corrections. Maintainer: Brian Tighe.