Atmospheric River Trigger Bomb Cyclone

Atmospheric River Expected to Trigger ‘Bomb Cyclone’ in California

After California saw a massive flood system that killed at least one person, the state is now preparing for another weather event. Over the last week, the state saw extreme flooding, power outages, landslides, and evacuations. Now, meteorologists are calling for another atmospheric river event. This is described as a long band of moisture drawn in from the tropics.

Currently, 12 million Central and Northern California residents are under a flood watch. Beginning on Wednesday, areas pummeled with brutal wind and rain are expected to be hit again with extreme weather.

In Los Angeles, the city saw temperatures in the high 70s less than two weeks ago. Now, city officials have issued a cold weather alert after the area received a cold front on Tuesday. In some areas, it will dip below 32 degrees.

A bomb cyclone can be triggered by atmospheric rivers, which are plumes of isolated moisture in the sky. This can also contribute to half of the precipitation in some parts of the state.

According to the Center for Western Weather and Extremes, a research group that categorizes atmospheric rivers on a scale of one to five depending on how much water vapor they move and how long they last, rated the predicted storm as a category three.

“This is a serious situation to be monitoring the forecast for and taking action,” said Marty Ralph, director of the group.

California braces for bomb cyclone event amid already extreme weather conditions

This phenomenon, paired with strengthening low pressure on the Pacifics ocean’s surface off the coast, is expected to “bomb out” and get stronger rapidly.

“It will become a meteorological bomb cyclone,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA and the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

A bomb cyclone is also a storm that grows in intensity quickly. Last month, a bomb cyclone slammed into the U.S., bringing fatal winter weather and killing 12 people.

However, this time, meteorologists believe the bomb cyclone won’t make landfall. Despite this, California will likely see strong winds and massive rainfall that will only add to its initial flooding problem.

The cyclone will also trigger warm and cold fronts over Northern California, which is already dealing with torrential rainfall. In addition, some meteorologists predict that the wet weather is here to stay in California.

“We’re locked in this prolonged wet pattern. It looks like it’s going to continue for a while, in fact, really for the foreseeable future now,” said Swain. According to Swain, the state could see more atmospheric river storms going into this weekend and next week.

On average, atmospheric rivers are responsible for over a billion dollars in yearly damage, per reports from the Center for Western Weather and Extremes.