Another atmospheric river takes aim at California as the state grapples with snow shutdowns and...

California was plagued by a devastating drought for months. Now, after a series of atmospheric rivers and winter storms, the state is being thrashed by significant amounts of snow and rain.

And it's about to get more intense.

Back-to-back winter storms have left many areas throughout the state almost totally buried in snow, forcing many residents to go on arduous hikes to secure basic needs, leaving avid hikers stranded and even shutting down Yosemite National Park. The Weather Channel reports that a storm system will continue to dump more snow through Wednesday before an atmospheric river merges into the region on Thursday.

"[The winter storm] will also get extra fuel by tapping into a long plume of deep moisture known as an atmospheric river," The Weather Channel said. "In this case, the ribbon of moisture will stretch over 2,000 miles long, from near Hawaii, what meteorologists often call the 'Pineapple Express.'"