Atmospheric River Impacts SE Alaska Story Map

An Atmospheric River moved through Southeast Alaska from November 30th-December 2nd, 2020.  The extreme weather event brought record-setting precipitation to the area and resulted in landslides, flooding, storm surge, and powerline damages.  What exactly is an Atmospheric River though?  Simply stated, Atmospheric Rivers are long narrow bands of concentrated water vapor that produce major amounts of rainfall.  

This Story Map produced by the National Weather Service provides not only a timeline of this particular event, but also detailed information on its impacts, including precipitation data from eleven locations in the Southeast of Alaska.  Disaster declarations are included that put into perspective the costs of infrastructure repair and extent of property damage.  In addition, a collection of graphics and animations provide excellent visualizations that support deeper understanding in support of prediction and planning for such extreme weather events in the future.