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By Anna Skinner
Associate News Editor
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National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologists have issued widespread warnings across the Pacific Northwest as an atmospheric river moves onshore, bringing the threat of floods, strong winds, and heavy rain.
Atmospheric rivers are a "long, narrow region in the atmosphere—like rivers in the sky—that transport most of the water vapor outside of the tropics," according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The storms brought by atmospheric rivers are known for their heavy snow, heavy rain and strong winds. They more commonly affect the West Coast, particularly during the winter months. Although the storms can bring beneficial snow that helps supplement reservoirs throughout the summer dry season, they can also trigger deadly flooding, mudslides and widespread power outages.
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The current storm comes as a similar, yet weaker storm hit the same region over the weekend. The atmospheric river impacting the Pacific Northwest on Monday and Tuesday will be stronger, meteorologists warned.
"A strong atmospheric river will bring prolonged heavy rainfall along with gusty winds to the Pacific Northwest through much of this week," NWS said in a Monday forecast.
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As of Monday morning, myriad weather warnings were in place across the Pacific Northwest related to the storm.
In Washington and Oregon, this included a flood warning, gale warning, coastal flood advisory, small craft advisory, wind advisory, flood watch, special weather statement, and hydrologic outlook.
Impacts extended further inland, with Idaho and Montana also facing flood threats. A flood watch was in place for Northern Idaho, with a hydrologic outlook stretching into Montana. The NWS Weather Prediction Center's Marc Chenard told Newsweek that most of the flood alerts were related to the atmospheric river.
However, Idaho and Montana also faced widespread high wind warnings and wind advisories, though these are more likely caused by a clipper system moving into the Northern Plains, Chenard said.
"This area is in between the [atmospheric river] to the west and clipper to the north, so you can't say there's no component of the atmospheric river driving the wind hazards," he said.
The NWS warned that the "prolonged atmospheric river" would bring several days of significant rainfall across the Pacific Northwest.
"Beginning this morning, rainfall coverage and intensity is expected to increase across coastal Washington and Oregon as a potent slug of subtropical moisture begins to flow inland along a strong Pacific jet," NWS said in the forecast. "Isolated to scattered instances of flash flooding are possible with this activity through midweek, where a slew of Flood Watches are in effect. Rainfall aside, parts of the Pacific Northwest, Northern Rockies, and Northern Plains and can also expect a period of gusty winds today and Tuesday as the same Pacific jet develops a strong clipper system in the Canadian Rockies."
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