Weather Gods Finally Drop Snow and Rain On California

http://gawker.com/weather-gods-finally-drop-snow-and-rain-on-california-1520059502

A winter storm dumped 13.5 billion gallons of water in Lake Tahoe over the weekend, along with 36 inches of snow at one Sierra Nevada ski resort and more than 10 inches of rain in some parts of the Bay Area. But is the drought over? No.

The National Weather Service says another two months of regular winter storms are needed to get the snowpack and reservoirs back to what was normal for this time of year. Unfortunately, "normal" may have already changed to a hotter and drier California—the way it was 500 years ago.

By looking at the width of tree rings in the Sierra Nevada, scientists know that California had an especially long and terrible drought 500 years ago. If this year remains dry, this current drought will be just as severe.


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