CW3E AR Update: 4-9 November 2016 Post-Event Summary
November 14, 2016
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Summary provided by C. Hecth, B. Kawzenuk, and F.M. Ralph
Author: cw3e-web
Water Year 2016 Summary
Water Year 2016 Summary
October 15, 2016
CW3E provides a summary of the top ten precipitation events based on the Northern Sierra 8-Station index during Water Year 2016 (Oct. 1 2015 – Sep. 30 2016). The top ten events occurred over a total of 27 days, and resulted in 30.09 inches of precipiation representing 51.89% of total water year precipitaiton and 60.2% of normal water year precipitation. All events were associated with an Atmospheric River (AR), with 6 considered strong ARs (IVT >750 kg m-1) s-1. For event specific reports refer to the CW3E News Page. For up to date AR forecasts and analysis visit the CW3E AR Portal.
Click here for a pdf file of this information.
Summary provided by B. Kawzenuk, and F.M. Ralph
CW3E Congratulates Undergraduate Itzel Gomez on Research Award
CW3E Congratulates Undergraduate Itzel Gomez on Research Award
November 8, 2016
Itzel Gomez, an undergraduate who worked with CW3E mentors Julie Kalansky, Anna Wilson, and F. Martin Ralph during summer 2016 with the UCSD California Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (CAMP) in Science, Engineering & Mathematics Summer Research Program, attended the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) National Conference. The SHPE National Conference was held November 2-6, 2016 in Seattle, WA. Itzel presented her summer project at CW3E with a poster titled “Assessing the Role of Soil Moisture on Reservoir Inflow in Northern California”. Her poster was included in the Research and Innovation in STEM (RISE) Engineering and Science Symposium. Itzel was awarded the Certificate of Excellence in the 2016 SHPE Engineering Science Symposium Best Poster Award. She won second place for her poster among 40 other presenters, which included undergraduate and graduate students. Itzel will also be presenting her poster at the upcoming CAMP Statewide Symposium, which will be held at UC Irvine on February 4, 2017.
CW3E AR Update: 4-9 November 2016 Outlook
CW3E AR Update: 4-9 November 2016 Post Event Summary
November 4, 2016
Two consecutive ARs are expected to make landfall over the Northwest U.S. and Southwest British Columbia. Current forecasts show both ARs with moderate strength, although there is high uncertainty in the forecast of the second AR. Despite high values of integrated vapor transport (IVT) forecasted precipitation values of the Northwest U.S. are modest due to the southwesterly orientation of the ARs. However, this orientation is favorable for precipitation production over Vancouver Island, where 5-day precipitation forecasts are >12 inches. For up to date AR forecasts visit the CW3E AR Portal.
Click here for a pdf file of this information.
Summary provided by C. Hecht, B. Kawzenuk, and F.M. Ralph; 3 PM PT Fri 05 Nov. 2016
CW3E AR Update: Post-Event Summary: 14-17 October 2016
CW3E AR Update: 14-17 October 2016 Post-Event Summary
October 20, 2016
CW3E gives a post-event storm summary about two Atmospheric Rivers that made landfall over the Pacific Northwest during 14-17 October 2016. This event was an R-Cat 3 event and produced over 15 inches of 72-hour precipitation.
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NCEP GFS Analysis – Valid: 0000 UTC 12 Oct 2016 – 0600 UTC 17 Oct 2016 | |
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| NEXRAD Radar: 0000 UTC 14-17 Oct 2016 | |
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CW3E AR Update: 14 October 2016 Summary and Outlook
CW3E AR Update: 4 October 2016 Summary and Outlook
October 14, 2016
For up to date AR forecasts visit the CW3E AR Portal.
Click here for a pdf file of this information.
CW3E AR Update: 13-15 October 2016 Outlook
CW3E AR Update: 13-15 October 2016 Outlook
October 12, 2016
A series of ARs are expected to make landfall over the Northwest U.S., including Northern CA. The first AR is expected to make landfall on 13 October 2016 followed by a second AR on 15 October 2016. These systems have R-Cat 2 rainfall potential as some areas could see >12 inches of precipitation in 72 hours. For up to date AR forecasts visit the CW3E AR Portal.
Click here for a pdf file of this information.
CW3E Represented at NWS San Diego’s WeatherFest 2016
CW3E Represented at NWS San Diego’s WeatherFest 2016
September 22, 2016
Dr. Anna Wilson explaining how weather looks from a satellite’s point of view at WeatherFest 2016 |
CW3E’s Rachel Weihs and Anna Wilson were on hand at the annual WeatherFest event hosted by the local National Weather Service office in San Diego, CA on September 17th, 2016. WeatherFest is presented by the Young Meteorologist Program and serves as an outreach event informing the general public on weather preparedness, safety, research, and education. Over 600 local weather enthusiasts attended this year’s WeatherFest where they were able to interact with representatives of the National Weather Service, first responders, research institutions, and local newscasters while enjoying games, viewing demonstrations, and gathering information. |
Dr. Rachel Weihs (left) and Dr. Anna Wilson (right) discussing CW3E’s Research with the publc. |
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The CW3E booth showcased the ongoing research into atmospheric river (AR) events with emphasis on the major contribution of ARs to California’s annual precipitation and their associated impacts on the management of water resources, reservoir flood risk, and drought. Attendees learned about the term “Atmospheric River” by viewing satellite animations of the associated clouds and precipitation during an AR event in December 2014 and referencing the narrow river-like transport of moisture from the tropics using SSMI visualizations. The CW3E booth featured a fully-functioning weather station with state-of-the-art research quality instruments feeding live data into a computer for viewing. They also provided interactive demonstrations and graphical information highlighting the importance of California’s topography and the influence of orographic lift on the spatial distribution of precipitation. Adult attendees enjoyed comparing the weather instruments on display to those they had at home, talking about storms they had experienced during their lifetimes, and viewing the satellite animations. Kids enjoyed the diorama of the California coastline and simulating rainfall with the tipping bucket rain gauge on the weather station. Through these activities, attendees were able to gain a better understanding of ARs and their impact on daily life. |
Dr. Rachel Weihs and James Taeger, General Forecaster at the San Diego NWS office, at the CW3E booth |
Contact: Anna Wilson (anna-m-wilson@ucsd.edu) and Rachel Weihs (rweihs@ucsd.edu)
CW3E Welcomes Dr. Rachel Weihs
CW3E welcomes Dr. Rachel Weihs
August 8, 2016
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Dr. Rachel Weihs started at CW3E in August 2016 as a Postdoctoral Scholar. Rachel earned her Ph.D. in Meteorology at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida under the direction of Dr. Mark Bourassa. Her dissertation focused on understanding the role of high frequency variability of sea surface temperatures on the near-surface winds and atmospheric boundary layer as produced by the Weather Research and Forecasting model. In addition, she was able to quantify the relative impact of the local diurnal variability of sea surface temperatures on regional weather and deduce the importance of two-way air-sea feedback processes on the magnitude of diurnal heating in the upper ocean in the extratropical Atlantic. She is excited to have joined the CW3E team in August 2016 to study the influences of the Pacific Ocean on the forecasting of atmospheric rivers as well as examining the role of air-sea interaction on the boundary layer and the low level jet associated with these important weather phenomena. |
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CW3E Welcomes Dr. Brian Henn
CW3E welcomes Dr. Brian Henn
August 8, 2016
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Dr. Brian Henn started at CW3E in August 2016 as a Postdoctoral Scholar. He is a native of Northern California and received undergraduate and master’s degrees from Princeton and Stanford in civil and environmental engineering. With interests in hydrology, water resources and infrastructure, he worked as an engineer on urban stormwater and sustainability projects at Hazen and Sawyer in New York City. Brian pursued doctoral studies at the University of Washington in the research group of Dr. Jessica Lundquist, receiving his Ph.D. in 2015. His dissertation used streamflow observations and novel modeling techniques to better understand orographic precipitation patterns over the Sierra Nevada mountain range. He is also a licensed civil engineer in California. |
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