The National Weather Service is forecasting a cold, dry week for much of the Inland Northwest.
Meteorologist Bryce Williams says high pressure is moving in from the Pacific and is expected to sit right over the top of the region for several days. That means sunshine during the day and cooler temperatures at night.
“We’re looking at that probably lasting at least through Thursday. It’s very likely that it could last into the weekend and through the weekend, actually. So there’s no real end for the foreseeable future," Williams said.
He says it also means warmer air sitting on top of cold air will act like a lid and minimize the air flow. That means, by mid-week or so, trapped pollutants will degrade the region’s air quality.
Bryce Williams: “The longer we go with this strong inversion, if you’re very sensitive to particulates in the air, you might want to limit your outdoor activity."
He says the region will probably also see "fog that sloshes around, almost like it’s in a bowl, to where we have sun in the tops of the mountains and fog in the valleys.”