California Storm of 5 January 2016: A Preliminary Synopsis of a Marginal Landfalling Atmospheric River

July 24, 2015

CW3E researcher Brian Kawzenuk provides an analyis and synopsis of an extreme precipitation event over the Southwestern United States during the 18-20 July 2015 period. Former Hurricane Dolores provided high amounts of atmospheric moisture to the Southwestern United States with allowed for multiple showers and thunderstorms to develop on 18 and 19 July 2015. Monthly precipitation records were broken in 48 hours throughout Southern California, which caused multiple landslides and flash floods.


 

The above loop shows MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) true-color during 15-22 July 2015.


 


Above is a sequence of 30-minute NEXRAD radar composite imagery from 18-20 July 2015 which shows the development of multiple thunderstorms.


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please click here for pdf file of this information.