GOES satellite water vapor imagery depicting monsoonal surge and offshore low. (NOAA/NWS)
“An active monsoonal pattern over the past 1-2 weeks has brought some active summer weather to California’s mountain and desert regions. Strong (to even severe) thunderstorms have occurred nearly daily over parts of the California interior, bringing locally intense downpours and resulting in some minor flash flooding in a few highly localized areas. Thousands of lightning strikes have occurred over California’s tinder dry forested regions over the past week, though most of these strikes have been accompanied by considerable rainfall. This is in stark contrast to the current situation in Oregon and Washington, where dry lightning strikes have led to massive and destructive wildfires over the past week.
Why are there thunderstorms in California in July?
The primary reason for all of this active weather throughout the West in recent days is the seasonal reversal of large-scale wind patterns associated with the North American Monsoon. … “
