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The Pacific Northwest coast saw two atmospheric rivers (ARs) bring heavy rains from Nov. 10-16, 2021, resulting in severe flooding, landslides, and damage to infrastructure in the British Columbia province of Canada. ARs are long, narrow corridors of water vapor that travel vast distances above the ocean from warm, tropical regions to higher latitudes, where they often release their moisture as rainfall when they reach land areas. While ARs occur across the globe, this year has been notable for several strong events that have impacted the Pacific Northwest coast. The two atmospheric rivers in

The Indian summer monsoon, also known as the southwest monsoon, falls within the South Asian monsoon and is the strongest and perhaps best-known of the world’s monsoons. During summer months when the Asian landmass heats up, warm, moist air flows northward from the Indian Ocean towards the Himalayas, bringing abundant showers and thundershowers to India. The summer monsoon is a regular event that occurs every year and is responsible for roughly 80% of India’s annual rainfall. The summer monsoon typically starts in early June, peaks in July and August and winds down during September and early

The Pacific Northwest experienced a memorable series of storms in late Oct. 2021 as several low-pressure systems rolled in from the northeast Pacific Ocean. One of the systems was classified by meteorologists as a “bomb cyclone”, meaning that its central pressure (an indication of storm strength) had dropped particularly rapidly in a short time period. At its minimum pressure (highest strength), the system was reported by the National Weather Service to have had the lowest pressure of a system over the northeastern Pacific Ocean since reliable observations began in 1974. The system was notable

This collection of resources explores some of the people and organizations using GPM and other NASA Earth data, and how they help improve life around the world.