The Challenges of Forecasting in the Far West

Forecasting in the far western United States offers unique challenges to meteorologists. The Pacific Ocean is the source region for most of the weather systems that move through this area; that's true of highly localized patterns such as fog and stratus, as well as synoptic scale lows and the atmospheric river phenomenon that produces sustained heavy rain and flooding. The presence of complex terrain in the form of major mountain ranges with peaks extending above 14,000 feet complicates the process of diagnosing and forecasting such weather. This presentation will offer several case studies covering some of the unique weather patterns that occur in this area, including major snowstorms, rain, flooding and wind storms. The presenting authors have several decades experience forecasting in the Pacific Northwest and the Intermountain West.