The predicted rain has begun. Rain associated with a potent atmospheric river, with some of the water originating thousands of miles away near the Philippines!
Consider the situation on Sunday afternoon, as shown by special satellites that observe atmospheric moisture from space (below).
You can see the plume of atmospheric moisture extending from the western Pacific to the Northwest.
But it is not quite that simple. There is substantial three-dimensionality to atmospheric rivers.
To prove this to you, below are air trajectories--the three-dimensional motion in space--of the air reaching the Cascades at 10,000, 5000, and 2000 meters above the surface. At high altitudes, the moisture is coming from the western Pacific, but at lower elevations, the moisture is coming off the Pacific to our south.
Atmospheric rivers are like real rivers, with tributaries contributing moisture along the way.
The big precipitation has started. Below are the precipitation totals for the past 24h.
A number of locations have already received 3-4.5 inches. And more is on the way.
Our rivers are rising very rapidly. For example, the levels of the Cowlitz River in SW Washington are zooming upward (see below). Soon it will be at flood stage.
I can vouch for this as this morning, getting out the door to Kent for work, it was not too bad then. Streets etc were damp, but not wet initially. It did continue to rain most of the day, and by early afternoon, it likely picked up so as I left the building to head home to Tacoma, it was raining and it only got worse as I drove back south. On SR 181 (68th Ave S) it was already beginning to get dark, with some lights coming on as I drove.
ReplyDeleteIt only got worse as I drove south with more street lights coming on and by the time I was midway between Federal Way and Tacoma, it was definitely getting dark and became almost totally dark around the 4:40PM mark.
A quick stop at Walmart on Union Ave for something for dinner, lunch meat etc and then home. It's nasty out there and winds are picking up as gusts. I think many calls for this one are either right on the mark, or close to it.
Here in lovely S. Everett...Palm trees are beginning to take root, sunburns are happening...thanks to that irritating "rain shadow". Much ado about not much!
ReplyDeleteYes, true! As of this moment, we've had 2-1/2" in Glacier since 7 am. Oh - WA Ecology also sent a notice saying that they've extended drought funding via rulemaking. Go figure!
ReplyDeleteIf there were any corners of our state that were still expierencing drought conditions before this week, they most certainly shouldn't be now. There will be droughts again in the future, to be sure. So drought funding is going to be needed at some point down the road. Its just not needed right now. Flood relief funding is what will be needed.
DeleteWhat time is that rainfall snapshot from? Seattle definitely got shadowed, but if the city from downtown south really got just .3” I’ll print that out and eat it.
ReplyDeleteNow I see it, 2120 hrs. The offer to have it for dinner stands; I biked home from Georgetown to Capitol Hill around that time, and I probably saw .3” fall during the half hour it takes me to get home.
ReplyDelete