With an incredibly wet winter comes a major shift in the landscape of previously parched California.

Reflecting on a wild winter, California Department of Water Resources Director Karla Nemeth said at a recent meeting of the agency that the state was unique across the

w

estern U.S. in its capacity to move from very, very wet to very, very dry and back to very, very wet.

The image below shows the incredible change from space.

The photo on the left, from

the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s NASA’s

Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, shows the state

from space

on Aug. 16, 2022.

By the time the photo on the right was captured, on March 26, 2023, deep browns had been replaced by lush greens. Snow blanketed the Sierra.

For skeptics who might think such a dramatic shift happens every year between summer and spring, below is a similar side-by-side image from Aug. 24, 2021, and March 25, 2022.

Though the landscape clearly gets greener and some snow appears on mountains, the difference last year was nowhere near as stark as

it is

this year.

Gov. Gavin Newsom significantly rolled back drought restrictions last week. Nearly two-thirds of the state was no longer in drought as of March 21, according to the U.S.

D

rought

M

onitor.

Orange County, CA – March 27: Following a ribbon-cutting ceremony, hikers Tom McDonnell, of Irvine, left, and Roxanne Bradley, of Westminster, hike a scenic trail during the opening of Saddleback Wilderness, a new trail system located within OC Parks Irvine Ranch Open Space in Orange County Monday, March 27, 2023. The area will open to the public Saturday, April 1, 2023, and will be accessible through scheduled programs only. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Striking before and after satellite photos show California's transformation to lush

Terry Castleman

March 30, 2023

With an incredibly wet winter comes a major shift in the landscape of previously parched California.

Reflecting on a wild winter, California Department of Water Resources Director Karla Nemeth said at a recent meeting of the agency that the state was unique across the

w

estern U.S. in its capacity to move from very, very wet to very, very dry and back to very, very wet.

The image below shows the incredible change from space.

The photo on the left, from

the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s NASA’s

Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, shows the state

from space

on Aug. 16, 2022.

By the time the photo on the right was captured, on March 26, 2023, deep browns had been replaced by lush greens. Snow blanketed the Sierra.

For skeptics who might think such a dramatic shift happens every year between summer and spring, below is a similar side-by-side image from Aug. 24, 2021, and March 25, 2022.

Though the landscape clearly gets greener and some snow appears on mountains, the difference last year was nowhere near as stark as

it is

this year.

Gov. Gavin Newsom significantly rolled back drought restrictions last week. Nearly two-thirds of the state was no longer in drought as of March 21, according to the U.S.

D

rought

M

onitor.