Biggest storm of 2019 to hit Bay Area, Sierra due to atmospheric river

The strongest storm of the year is expected to dump torrents of rain Wednesday and Thursday on the Bay Area and sheets of snow in the Sierra. A cold front will collide with an atmospheric river — a band of moisture that forms over the ocean — to squeeze out varying forms of precipitation as the system travels over land, officials said.

But after this week’s expected deluge, the weather will do what it does best. It will change.

Skies will likely be dry on Friday and Saturday, perhaps wet on Sunday, and then dry for a while after that. Ryan Walbrun, a National Weather Service meteorologist, said “a lot of the long-range indications show dry weather.