California storms left behind a ‘generational snowpack.’ What that means.
California’s mountain snowpack is the largest it’s been in decades, thanks to a barrage of atmospheric rivers in late December into January. The snow is a boon for the state’s water supply but could also pose a flood risk as the season progresses. Measurements completed last week show that Sierra Nevada snow water content is rivaling or outpacing the 1982-83 season, the biggest snow year in the past 40 years. Up to two feet of additional snow fell on the region this weekend. … Statewide snowpack is double the norm for the time of year. Some locations with longer records are ranking in the top 3 for early February snow since the 1940s and ’50s, according to [Desert Research Institute's Benjamin] Hatchett. Most important, at least a full season’s worth of snow has fallen so far across the Sierra, and more storms could arrive in February and March.
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