Scientists have long known that as the atmosphere gets warmer, the air is able to hold more moisture. “In general, this allows the most intense downpours to get more intense, because there can be a greater amount of water vapor in the air,” UCLA atmospheric scientist Karen McKinnon said. Explore the section As the climate warms, the atmospheric rivers that …
As winter approached, few anticipated what was about to hit California. It could be random bad luck.” Many of winter’s atmospheric river storms came farther south, moved slowly after making landfall and came later in the season than in prior years — creating more disruption, said Chad Hecht, a research and operations meteorologist at the Center for Western Weather and …
