‘Hydroclimate Whiplash’ Worsens California’s Storms and Drought
Air made warmer by climate change is exacerbating both aridity and precipitation, leading to double-whammy weather cycles.
Workers build a flood protection barrier at the entrance to a business in the Mission District of San Francisco.
Photographer: David Paul Morris/BloombergIn recent years, extreme storms being juiced by climate change familiarized the general public with terms like “bomb cyclone” and “atmospheric river.” Now a string of storms in California is showcasing another unwelcome weather reality of the warming world: “hydroclimate whiplash.”
After years of megadrought left the land parched, California experienced so much heavy rain so quickly that the governor declared a state of emergency on Wednesday as another storm system prepared to unload on the state. And forecasters have predicted more rain for the weekend.