Time-Lapse Video Shows Back-to-Back Atmospheric Rivers Pummel California

A time-lapse video shared on social media shows the progression of two back-to-back atmospheric rivers that pummeled California in less than a week.

The first storm arrived last Thursday and was quickly followed by a second, more severe atmospheric river that battered California with torrential rain, heavy snow and exceptionally strong winds on Sunday. The second storm moved through the state over the course of several days, with some lingering showers still impacting parts of southeastern California on Wednesday.

The back-to-back storms caused devastating floods and countless mudslides, and the new time-lapse shows the extent of each storm's reach.

Atmospheric rivers are defined as a "long, narrow region in the atmosphere—like rivers in the sky—that transport most of the water vapor outside of the tropics," according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

"Over the last week, two powerful atmospheric rivers have battered the US West. This impressive time lapse shows the full evolution of these systems," social media account @CIRA_CSU posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday morning.

The video begins on January 29 in advance of the first storm, which becomes visible on January 30. Beginning impacts arrive in California on January 31, with the storm hitting the state in earnest the next day. By February 2, the storm largely had moved through the state.

Meteorologists were more concerned with the second storm, which was first depicted in the time-lapse late Saturday night. The storm brought an onslaught of rain for several days before it slowly began to move eastward into Nevada, Utah and Arizona on Tuesday.

The video has been viewed 36,000 times as of 12:45 p.m. ET Wednesday.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite imagery shared on social media this week showed that the storm system accompanying the second atmospheric river was causing weather-related impacts in as many as nine states at the same time.

Another storm is approaching California, heightening fears that the already-flooded regions will have to withstand even more precipitation. AccuWeather meteorologist Brandon Buckingham told Newsweek that the next storm will arrive on Wednesday, with the brunt of the rain falling in the overnight hours.

"This one is a shorter duration event for most places," Buckingham said. "This [storm] should be a six- to 12-hour period of showers."

Buckingham said that better news was on the horizon for California, as dry conditions were forecast for the majority of the state this weekend and into next week.