February 23, 2021 - The Pineapple Express heads to the Pacific West Coast

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   Pineapple Express
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   A dramatic true-color image of an atmospheric river flowing over the
   Pacific Ocean towards the United States’ Pacific Northwest was captured
   by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board
   NASA’s Terra satellite on February 21, 2021. The system is bringing
   precipitation to coastal areas and the mountains of Washington and
   Oregon, triggering flood watches and increasing the risk for
   avalanches.

   Atmospheric rivers, which are essentially jet streams of moist air, may
   stretch tens to hundreds of miles wide, and sometimes can carry an
   amount of water vapor equivalent to 7.5 to 15 times the flow at the
   mouth of the Mississippi River. They often occur of the west coast of
   North and South America and can be either a blessing—bringing
   much-needed rain in dry years—or a curse as they dump large amounts of
   water onto already-wet region.

   The most common type of atmospheric river to impact the West Coast is
   known as the “Pineapple Express”. A Pineapple Express, such as this
   one, is created when moisture builds up in the tropical Pacific Ocean
   near Hawaii—where pineapples are common—and then charges like a rapid
   freight train across about 2,600 miles (4,180) of ocean to dump an
   impressive load of moisture on the U.S. and Canada’s West Coasts.

   Image Facts
   Satellite:  Terra
   Date Acquired: 2/21/2020
   Resolutions:  1km (4 MB),
   Bands Used: 1,4,3
   Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC



https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2021-02-23
 
