Atmospheric rivers

How heat on the Tibetan Plateau fuels powerful storms in California, half a world away

<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/758947/original/file-20260909-60-qxmnah.jpg?ixlib=rb-4.1.1&rect=0%2C3%2C5349%2C3566&q=45&auto=format&w=1050&h=700&fit=crop" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Heavy rain from an atmospheric river sent the Los Angeles River, normally mostly empty, spilling over its sides in February 2024.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/an-aerial-view-of-the-los-angeles-river-swollen-by-storm-news-photo/1989155402?adppopup=true">Mario Tama/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Tibetan Plateau may be on the other side of the world from California, but what happens on this high-altitude landscape in Asia can set off a chain of events that fuels powerful atmospheric rivers with flooding rainfall and heavy snow hitting the U.S. West Coast.</p> <p>My team of atmospheric scientists <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aeg3577">discovered t