Drought Update Across the United States (Credit: NOAA Climate.gov, United States Drought Monitor,Climate Prediction Center)

 
Discussion:  In the southwestern United States, drought conditions have gone from abnormally dry to extreme in a span of six months.  Some states across the Southern Plains received less than 100 percent of their average monthly precipitation this winter.  In the Northeast, Midwest, and Southeast these states saw some relief in drought conditions as they experienced some significant rainfall and snowfall events. According to the U.S. Drought monitor, 36% of the country is experiencing some level of drought.

The drought map, which is made by the National Drought Mitigation Center, bases the level of drought on 4 levels ranging from D0 (abnormally dry) to D4 (exceptional drought). Levels of D3 drought, which is extreme drought, still linger across the Texas Panhandle, Oklahoma, and into some parts of the Four Corners. he Climate Prediction Center has released their drought outlook for the month valid from February to March and it shows that conditions are likely to remain the same across the southwestern United States while in parts of Montana and the Carolinas drought starts to improve a. Overall the seasonal outlook which is valid from February to May shows that drought will remain in parts of the southwest but conditions will start to improve and in parts of Montana and the southeast drought conditions are likely to be  gone. 

For more information on the ongoing drought conditions, be sure to click here!

© 2018 Meteorologist Shannon Scully