WebHeader_Grove.png
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Join as a sustainer and support independent local news for your community.

Learning More About Storms – By Flying Into Them

A view out the window of the NOAA research plane, with the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge in the distance. The plane is gaining altitude to fly into the storm cloud. (Danielle Venton/KQED)
A view out the window of the NOAA research plane, with the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge in the distance. The plane is gaining altitude to fly into the storm cloud. (Danielle Venton/KQED)

State officials in Oregon say landslides and high water have closed parts of many state highways. That’s after being hammered by a heavy rain storm – the kind scientists call an “atmospheric river.” In most years, West Coast states count on four to six of these super-soakers for as much as half of their annual precipitation.

Scientists have a lot to learn about these storms, including how they form and what makes them so strong. The best way to study the storms is by flying into them head-on. Danielle Venton from Here & Now contributor KQED climbed aboard one of the research planes and brought back this report.

Reporter

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

You make NHPR possible.

NHPR is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.

Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.