This week, a big atmospheric river is going to hit Northern California. It will be the first storm of the season like this.
The National Weather Service (NWS) says the system coming our way is “rather impressive.” It could bring heavy rain and snow to the area starting Wednesday, November 20, and going through the weekend.
An atmospheric river brings a lot of water vapor from the tropics to land, where it often falls as heavy rain or snow. In October 2021, an atmospheric river dumped 750% of San Francisco’s normal monthly rainfall in one event. This showed how badly these storms can affect the state.
Meteorologists are still working on their predictions of where the storm will go, but they are becoming more sure that Northern California, especially the very north of the state and areas close to the Oregon border, will be hit the hardest.
Forecasts say the storm could be mild to severe. Some experts, like Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA, say there is a chance of a category 5 atmospheric river, which is the worst on the scale.
Even though we don’t know exactly what will happen, the storm could bring much-needed relief to the Bay Area, which has only gotten 28% of its normal rainfall so far. On Sunday night, there will likely be a few showers. On Monday, the skies will be clearer before the storm system hits in the middle of the week.
The NWS will keep an eye on the storm and let us know about new information about the amount of rain and the risk of flooding as it comes in. People who live in low-lying areas are told to stay informed and get ready for possible flooding.
