New Intensity Model Finds Global Hotspots for Atmospheric Rivers

Smart Water Magazine has written an article covering a new study that continues research into an atmospheric river intensity scale by utilizing it to identify atmospheric river hotspots around the globe. The scale, first proposed in 2019 to be used for the U.S. West Coast, ranks atmospheric rivers in ascending order of intensity from AR-1 to AR-5 based off the duration of the river and how much moisture it moves. Researchers found more intense atmospheric rivers were less likely to make landfall and, when they did, would primarily impact coastal areas similarly to hurricanes. The four hotspots discovered include the Southeast Atlantic, the Southeast Pacific, the extratropical North Pacific, and the extratropical North Atlantic. Read more at Smart Water Magazine.