‘Climate whiplash’ is the new normal for California, experts say
Summer is approaching in California, and warmer temperatures have been melting the massive snowpack dumped on the state over the winter. … After years of drought, a string of storms over the winter and into the spring dropped as much as 700 inches of snow across California’s mountain range over the winter — even on some beaches. … It was a sharp reversal from 2022, when California recorded its driest January, February, and March in over a century and drought records were set across the western U.S. Experts call such wild swings from one type of extreme weather to another “climate whiplash.” And new research shows the trend could worsen and that the wetter years may not make up for extended years of drought. Water managers in the state are already starting to plan strategies to deal with longer droughts and less snow.
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