California Today: In a Hurricane-Season Twist, the West Coast May Be the One to Watch
Today's top stories from California.
The New York Times
California Today
August 7, 2026, 6:31 a.m. Pacific time

Today’s Top Story

More California News

One Dead in California Fire Started by Man Who Said He Lit It by Accident

The authorities said they found a body inside a burned home near Sacramento. A man was charged this week with causing the blaze by operating equipment that produced sparks.

A Growing Problem in Fighting Wildfires: Drones

Aircraft violating restrictions have disrupted firefighting efforts in Spokane County, Wash., this week, officials said.

Woman Who Killed Husband 2 Decades Ago Admits to Murdering Wife

A California woman who was sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2004 pleaded guilty this week in another stabbing death.

This A.I. Just Created Viruses Not Found in Nature

Scientists at Stanford trained artificial intelligence on libraries of DNA and then asked the model to create recipes for viral genomes. Sixteen of them were viable.

Trump Administration to Pay German Firm $1.2 Billion to Cancel Wind Leases

The firm will abandon plans to build wind farms off the coasts of California, New York, and Louisiana.

Art Gallery Shows to See in August

This week in Newly Reviewed Carolina Miranda covers three shows in Los Angeles: a group exhibit with Tom of Finland at the center, Betye Saar’s “wearable art” and Esther Pearl Watson’s spaceships.

Thomas S. Hines, Who Helped Put L.A. Architecture on the Map, Dies at 89

A historian at U.C.L.A., he showed how Los Angeles’s architects and planners made the city a global center for modernist design in the 20th century.

Mike Krukow’s Retirement Is Going to Take a Long Time for Giants Fans to Process

Krukow’s broadcasting career will always remain a gift. The Giants got lucky. So did their fans. So did Krukow himself.

Today’s Extreme Weather

CITYRISK TYPES
Bakersfield
Moderate risk
Unhealthy heat
Los Angeles
Some risk
Unhealthy heat
San Diego
Some risk
Unhealthy heat
San Jose
Some risk
Unhealthy heat
Fresno
Some risk
Unhealthy heat
Sacramento
Some risk
Unhealthy heat
Stockton
Some risk
Unhealthy heat
RiskSomeSome riskModerate riskHigh riskHigh

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Today's Recipe

Article Image

Andrew Bui for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich.

Summer Melon Spoon Salad

Recipe from Sarah Hymanson and Sara Kramer

Adapted by Genevieve Ko

Filled StarFilled StarFilled StarFilled StarFilled Star

7

20 minutes

Makes 4 to 6 servings

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