California’s catastrophic rainfall in early 2017 and 2023 may have had an unexpected connection thousands of miles away. A new study has identified a climate teleconnection linking unusually warm temperatures over the Tibetan Plateau with extreme precipitation across California and neighboring western states. The research suggests that warming over the high-altitude plateau helped create an atmospheric disturbance that traveled eastward along the jet stream before strengthening weather systems near the US West Coast. The finding does not mean China 'caused' California’s rain in a direct sense. Instead, it reveals how changes in one distant part of the atmosphere can influence weather patterns far away. According to Live Science, this is the first time researchers have identified the link, known as a 'climate teleconnection'. The findings could help improve forecasts of extreme weather across the western US, potentially giving coastal communities earlier warnings and helping save lives while reducing billions of dollars in property damage.
WHAT HAPPENED IN CALIFORNIA IN 2017 and 2023?
