Several climate indicators are used to monitor drought in the United States. These indicators include:

• the Palmer Z Index, Palmer Drought Severity Index, and Palmer Hydrological Drought Index

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• the one-month, two-month, three-month, six-month, nine-month, 12-month, and 24-month Standardized Precipitation Index

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• maps showing the percent of normal precipitation for airport stations for the current month, last three months, and year-to-date

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• the statewide precipitation ranks for current month (short-term) and 3-months, 6-months, and 12 months (longer-term)

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• the percent of normal precipitation maps, based on Cooperative Network and other station reports, provided by the NOAA Regional Climate Centers (HPRCC)

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• NOAA satellite observations of vegetation health are most effective during the warm season months. The early November VHI (Vegetation Health Index) map showed a large area of vegetative stress from northern Mexico stretching across parts of the Rockies and Great Plains and into the southern Canadian prairies, then westward to the Great Basin and parts of the Pacific Northwest:

• the short-term surface wetness anomaly map computed by the National Climatic Data Center from the Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSMI), a polar orbiting satellite with global coverage. It should be noted that the observations this month show much of Alaska and northern Canada as having wetter-than-normal surface conditions. This is likely due to above-normal melting of snow cover (indicated by the below-normal snow cover anomalies) resulting from warmer-than-normal temperatures in the area.

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• modeled runoff, evaporation, and soil moisture conditions as calculated by the National Weather Service

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• modeled soil moisture conditions in the top and deeper soil layers as calculated by the Midwest Regional Climate Center

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• the percent of average precipitation map for the water year to date for the SNOTEL stations in the western mountains provided by the Western Regional Climate Center

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• the USGS October daily streamflow and monthly mean streamflow maps