This atmospheric river will have more impact than others, said Charles Smith, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service. He said it will include heavy rain and some snow, which will be a welcome break from drought conditions in the region.
"The good thing is that there's gonna be snow with this, so I think some of the rivers will again rise up," he said. "But since the region's in such need of rain, the reservoirs are still pretty low, so I wouldn't anticipate any widespread flooding."
Smith said Northern California will bear the brunt of the storm, which should last between Wednesday and Friday. He does not expect high winds or power outages.
The weather will help replenish some of the region's water and snowpack. Smith said the region is drier in some places than it normally should be this time of year.
"We are a little behind in the snowpack. But I think that some of that should come back in the coming days. The upcoming weather could definitely help. It's not going to fix anything, but it always takes small steps," he said.
This weather comes after the region has already been pummeled by heavy wind and strong rain from another atmospheric river.
