Although some locations did experience modest improvements, mainly in areas seeing in excess of 2 inches of rainfall, degradation to moderate drought (D1) and expansion of abnormal dryness (D0) is widespread across the Corn Belt, the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, and the Upper Midwest. MidwestĪ storm system over the Midwest and Great Lakes over the weekend did little to halt widespread degradation of conditions across the Midwest. In addition, Lake Meredith, located north of Amarillo has reached 45.8 percent of its capacity, its highest since 2001, according to Texas Water Development Board data. For example, Amarillo Texas recently set a new record of 20 days with measurable precipitation during May the previous record being 15 days. Rainfall has been plentiful in these areas in recent weeks and months. However, farther westward across western portions of the Southern Plains, pockets of heavy rainfall continued to add to 60-day precipitation surpluses, particularly for parts of the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles. This is also the case in portions of central Texas and parts of the middle Red River basin, where targeted degradations are also warranted. Several locations across Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee experienced degradation this week, as the frontal boundary draped across the southern tier states did not result in enough precipitation to stave off degradation for those experiencing antecedent dryness. However, after a reassessment of drought indicators near the Big Bend, an improvement to severe drought (D2) conditions is warranted. In Florida, timely rainfall resulted in a status quo depiction for the most part. 7-day average stream flows across the Piedmont and Coastal Plain of Virginia and North Carolina have fallen below the 24th percentile of the historical distribution for this week and soil moisture has also continued to decline. In areas with antecedent dryness in place who received below normal rainfall this week, degradation to moderate drought (D1) in Virginia and degradation to abnormal dryness (D0) elsewhere across the Southeast is warranted. Unfortunately, with the exception of a few locations in the Carolinas, the heaviest rain fell in areas lacking any dryness. SoutheastĪ trailing frontal boundary, associated with a storm system moving across the Great Lakes and Northeast toward the end of the week, resulted in pockets of heavy rainfall in excess of 2 inches across the central Gulf Coast, parts of the Coastal Plain of the Carolinas, and the Southern Appalachians. 7-day average stream flows have fallen below the 10th percentile of the historical distribution for this period and soil moisture continues to decline. In areas that experienced below average 7-day rainfall, expansion of abnormally dryness (D0) and moderate drought (D1) conditions is warranted, particularly across southern portions of the Northeast. Otherwise, the storm system did little to improve antecedent dryness, acting only to halt ongoing deterioration, with the help of below average maximum temperatures for this week. NortheastĪ storm system developed over the Midwest during the weekend and moved across the Northeast Monday into Tuesday bringing heavy rainfall to parts of the interior Northeast, warranting targeted improvements to the drought depiction in portions of northeastern Pennsylvania and interior New England. In areas that received below normal rainfall this week, drought worsened, as rainfall deficits continue to increase. From the eastern Great Plains to the Eastern Seaboard, 7-day rainfall surpluses are more scattered in nature, leading to only modest improvements in areas seeing the heaviest amounts. Improvements are mainly confined to the western Great Plains, where widespread 7-day rainfall totals exceeded 200 percent of average for the week, further adding to short-term precipitation surpluses. There is a mix of improving and worsening drought conditions across the Great Plains. The exception is the Pacific Northwest, where below normal precipitation and above normal temperatures resulted in worsening drought conditions along the northern Cascades. Above normal precipitation and below normal temperatures resulted in another week of targeted improvements across portions of the Intermountain West, adding to recent precipitation totals that have continued to improve long-term drought conditions.
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