The atmospheric river continues to bring significant impacts, now over the mountains across inland northern California. Up to 36 inches are possible just today. Another storm is coming this week.

The atmospheric river is the gift that keeps on giving for California. The heavy rains will continue to affect the Bay area, and now deep moisture has migrated inland, and heavy snow falls on the Sierras. Tuesday will be marked by periods of intense snow; the highest peaks of the Sierra could receive up to 36 inches through Wednesday morning. At the same time, elevations up to 5,000 feet could get around 12 inches during the same period.

Our WeatherRadar shows the Bay Area still under heavy rains throughout most of Tuesday, with rain showers ending by 10 p.m. The precipitation will continue to affect central California during the evening and overnight hours, with rain making it as far south as Los Angeles as early as Tuesday afternoon and continuing through the night.

The rain and show will also come with strong winds. Our WindRadar shows that gusts along the Bay Area could reach 45 mph and more than 60 mph along the Sierras. Expect the wind to subside gradually as the system moves inland on Wednesday, but keep in mind that another system will shift and increase the winds again starting Thursday morning.

The next storm

The next storm, associated with an atmospheric river, will come ashore, entering the central California coast on Thursday afternoon. Deep moisture will also impact the northern tier, and heavy snow will start to affect the north California mountains on Thursday morning. The precipitation will spread quickly for the northern three-quarters of California by the afternoon. Rain will be confined to the eastern areas, while snow is over the mountains.