Southern California heads into the final weekend of August after a partial lunar eclipse and days of triple-digit heat, while a Saturday night aviation gathering at Santa Monica Airport offers another reason to get out as temperatures begin falling.
LOS ANGELES — August 28, 2026 — Southern California is heading into the final weekend of August with plenty happening in the sky and on the ground.
A deep partial lunar eclipse gave skywatchers across much of the Americas a celestial event Thursday night into early Friday, Los Angeles County is beginning to emerge from another stretch of extreme heat, and Santa Monica Airport will welcome the community Saturday night for an end-of-summer aviation gathering.
For Southern Californians who have spent the week dealing with temperatures reaching and exceeding 100 degrees in some communities, perhaps the biggest news of the weekend is what comes afterward: significantly cooler weather is expected to arrive across the region by Sunday and Monday.
A Deep Partial Lunar Eclipse Started the Weekend
The weekend began with an astronomical event as the Moon passed through Earth’s shadow during the night of Aug. 27 into Aug. 28.
According to NASA, the event was a deep partial lunar eclipse visible across much of the Americas as well as portions of Europe, Africa and the Pacific.
At the point of greatest eclipse, approximately 96.3% of the Moon’s disk was inside Earth’s umbra — the darker central portion of Earth’s shadow.
That meant the eclipse came remarkably close to becoming a total lunar eclipse, with only a small portion of the Moon remaining outside the umbra at its peak.
The event followed the Aug. 12 total solar eclipse, which crossed portions of the Northern Hemisphere earlier this month.
Unlike a solar eclipse, a lunar eclipse occurs when Earth moves between the Sun and the Moon, causing Earth’s shadow to fall across the lunar surface.
Extreme Heat Begins to Ease Across Los Angeles
Back on Earth, Southern California residents have been dealing with a considerably different natural phenomenon: extreme heat.
The National Weather Service issued an Extreme Heat Warning for portions of Los Angeles County through 8 p.m. Friday.
Temperatures Friday were forecast to reach 90 to 101 degrees across areas including downtown Los Angeles and the inland Los Angeles County coast.
The San Gabriel Valley, including Pasadena, faced even hotter conditions, with Friday highs forecast between 99 and 105 degrees.
But relief is coming.
Temperatures begin trending downward over the weekend before a much more noticeable cooldown arrives Sunday and Monday.
Saturday will remain hot across many inland communities. Downtown Los Angeles and surrounding areas could still reach the upper 80s and 90s, while parts of the San Gabriel Valley could reach between 95 and 102 degrees.
By Sunday, temperatures across the San Gabriel Valley are expected to fall into the mid-80s to lower 90s.
Then Monday brings the bigger change.
The National Weather Service forecasts highs in the upper 70s to mid-80s for downtown Los Angeles and surrounding inland-coastal communities Monday.
Along the Los Angeles County beaches, Monday could be even cooler, with highs ranging from the lower 70s at the beaches to the lower 80s farther inland.
After a week when portions of the region crossed the 100-degree mark, that could feel like a dramatic change.
Santa Monica Flyers Hosts End-of-Summer Hangar Party Saturday
For anyone looking for something to do as temperatures begin cooling, Santa Monica Airport will be home to an aviation community gathering Saturday evening.
Santa Monica Flyers is hosting its End-of-Summer Hangar Party Saturday, Aug. 29, at its hangar at Santa Monica Airport.
The gathering brings pilots, flight instructors, students, aviation enthusiasts and members of the community together around airplanes, food, music and flying.
The event runs from 6 to 10 p.m. at:
Santa Monica Flyers
3165 Donald Douglas Loop South
Santa Monica, CA 90405
The free community event is expected to include aircraft, food, music, entertainment and raffle prizes, including flight credit.
Visitors will also have an opportunity to see a Cirrus SR20-G7, bringing one of the flight school’s modern training aircraft into the evening’s activities.
You don’t have to be a pilot or current flight student to attend.
People interested in aviation, learning to fly or simply seeing Santa Monica Airport from a different perspective are welcome.
Because organizers are providing food and need an accurate head count, attendees are encouraged to RSVP in advance rather than simply showing up Saturday night.
Presence News Will Be at Santa Monica Airport
Presence News will also be at Saturday’s gathering, stopping by Santa Monica Airport for a quick video interview and a look inside the event.
The visit continues Presence News’ coverage of events, businesses and communities across Southern California.
For people who have wondered what happens inside one of the hangars at Santa Monica Airport — or what it might be like to learn to fly from one of the country’s most recognizable coastal airports — Saturday offers an opportunity to meet some of the people who fly there.
A Cooler Start to September Is Coming
Saturday may still feel like summer across much of Los Angeles County, particularly away from the immediate coastline.
By Monday, however, the difference should be noticeable.
Temperatures around downtown Los Angeles are expected to fall into the upper 70s and 80s, while coastal communities could experience highs in the 70s.
That makes the final weekend of August something of a transition point for Southern California: an astronomical event overhead, one more hot Saturday, an aviation gathering beside the Pacific and, finally, some relief from the heat.
For Los Angeles, September may begin considerably cooler than August is ending.
