You’ve probably seen the forecast for Los Angeles and thought, "Cool, 74 degrees and sunny, I'm wearing shorts." Then you drive down to the Port of Los Angeles and realize you've made a massive mistake. Honestly, the weather san pedro ca hourly trends are a different beast entirely compared to the rest of the LA Basin. While downtown is baking, San Pedro is often sitting under a stubborn gray blanket of marine layer that refuses to budge until noon.
Today, Sunday, January 18, 2026, is actually one of those "Santa Ana" adjacent days where the coastal cooling is taking a backseat. We are looking at a high of 74°F and a low of 53°F. If you’re checking the hourly breakdown, you’ll notice it’s currently a crisp 74°F with a very light 2 mph north wind. It’s basically perfect, but don’t let the "sunny" label fool you into thinking the humidity is gone—it’s sitting at 28% right now, which is actually quite dry for a harbor town.
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Why the Marine Layer Ruins Your Morning Plans
Most people think "partly sunny" means a few cute clouds. In San Pedro, it often means a thick, wet wall of fog that the National Weather Service calls the "marine layer." This happens because of a temperature inversion—warm air from the land sits on top of the cool air coming off the Pacific.
Basically, the cold water "traps" the moisture.
If you're looking at the weather san pedro ca hourly forecast for a typical January morning, you'll often see 100% humidity and visibility under a mile until about 10:00 AM. Today is an outlier. Because the wind is coming from the north rather than the usual onshore flow, that gray soup is being pushed out to sea.
The Hourly Breakdown for Today (Jan 18)
- 1:00 PM: Peak warmth at 74°F. The UV index is low (around 1), so you won't sizzle, but it's the best time for a walk near Point Fermin.
- 4:00 PM: Temperatures start their dip. Expect the northwest wind to pick up slightly to about 6 mph.
- Sunset (approx 5:11 PM): The "golden hour" in Pedro is legendary, but the temp will drop to the low 60s fast.
- 9:00 PM: We’ll be hovering around 58°F. Clear skies mean the heat escapes quickly into space—a process meteorologists call radiational cooling.
The "Microclimate" Trap
San Pedro is part of the Los Angeles "coastal zone," but it’s its own world. On a day like today, the difference between the Korean Bell of Friendship and the inland San Fernando Valley can be 15 degrees.
Historical data from the Western Regional Climate Center shows that January usually averages a max of 62.9°F. The fact that we are hitting 74°F today means we are well above the norm. It’s a "warm" winter day by any standard.
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Rain? Not likely today. There’s a tiny 5% chance of a stray sprinkle this afternoon, but it’s mostly just for show. January typically brings about 2 inches of rain to the 90731 and 90732 zip codes, but 2026 has been relatively dry so far.
Packing for the Port
If you are heading down to the waterfront today, "layers" isn't just a suggestion; it's a survival strategy.
- Morning: You need a light jacket. Even when it's clear, the air off the water feels "heavy."
- Midday: T-shirt weather. The sun is direct, and with the north wind, it feels even warmer than the thermometer says.
- Evening: Back to the hoodie. Once that sun goes behind the Palos Verdes Peninsula, the temperature falls off a cliff.
Kinda weird, right? You’ve got the Pacific Ocean acting as a giant air conditioner that someone keeps messing with.
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Actionable Tips for Navigating San Pedro Weather
- Check the Wind Direction: If the hourly wind is "South" or "Southwest," expect fog. If it's "North" or "Northeast" like today, expect clear skies and higher temps.
- Monitor the Humidity: When humidity climbs above 70% in the hourly report, the "burn off" of the clouds will take longer.
- Watch the Dew Point: If the temperature and dew point are within three degrees of each other, you're going to see fog. Period.
Keep an eye on that northwest shift later tonight. While today is sunny, the return of the 6 mph northwest breeze this evening signals a return to more typical coastal patterns. Enjoy the 74-degree peak while it lasts, because the overnight low of 53°F will definitely remind you it’s still January.
Next Steps: Check the wind speed again around 3:00 PM; if it exceeds 10 mph, the "feels like" temperature at the coastline will drop significantly. If you're planning a trip to the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, the outdoor tidepools are best visited during this afternoon's peak warmth.