The Atmospheric Spigot is On and Will Stay On

 The rain over the past few days is just a taste of what is in store for us this week.

And by the end of the next few days, the annual precipitation for many Northwest locations will actually be above normal, even after the dry summer and early fall.

Tonight, another wet system is approaching (see the latest radar image below)

A view of the latest infrared satellite imagery shows that one system after another is lined up to move into our region (see below).

The latest European Center forecast for accumulated precipitation for the next 10 days is stunningly wet, with over ten inches on the western slopes of some of our regional terrain (see below).

The wildfires will be history--that is pretty much guaranteed--and the streamflow will zoom upward, which is good for fish migration up rivers.   Reservoirs and dams will begin to refill.

You can turn off your sprinkler systems.

The UW forecast system shows a similar picture, with the total precipitation over the next 7 days reaching up to 10 inches in certain exposed terrain, particularly in BC.


I haven't talked about snow in a long time.   Time to do so.  

Here is the UW model's forecast snow totals for the next week.  Wow.  Several feet in the Cascades and much more over southern BC.


The media and others can move on now from the incessant stories of smoke, wildfires, and drought, to the topics of flooding and atmospheric rivers.


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