To compare current drought conditions with last week’s map, click here.
Visit the NDMC Photo Gallery to see photos of drought conditions in California, Georgia, South Carolina, and other states. If you have photos showing drought conditions, please consider submitting them to the Photo Gallery. The data cutoff for Drought Monitor maps is Tuesday at 7 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. The maps, which are based on analysis of the data, are released each Thursday at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. NOTE: To view regional drought conditions, click on map below. State maps can be accessed from regional maps. |
To compare current drought conditions with last week’s map, click here. |
| To view tabular statistics of this week's Drought Monitor, click here. | To view tabular statistics for the Drought Monitor archive, click here. |
| To view Drought Monitor Change Maps, click here. |
NDMC's Drought Impact Reporter |
6-week animation |
12-week animation |
short-term drought indicator blends |
long-term drought indicator blends |
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| For a .pdf version of the Drought Monitor, click here. |
| For more information on the Drought Impact Reporter click here. |
| For annual animations of the Drought Monitor click here. |
| For more information on the above experimental drought blends, see http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/predictions/tools/edb/droughtblend-access-page.html#exp. |
| The drought indicators that are synthesized into the Drought Monitor map are on this website, under Forecasts and Current Conditions. |
| This summary map is based on a multi-index drought classification scheme. |
| For local details and impacts, please contact your State Climatologist or Regional Climate Center. |
| Free Online Sources of Historical Weather Data |
| Contact People |
| North American Drought Monitor |
| The discussion in the Looking Ahead section is simply a description of what the official national guidance from the National Weather Service (NWS) National Centers for Environmental Prediction is depicting for current areas of dryness and drought. The NWS forecast products utilized include the HPC 5-day QPF and 5-day Mean Temperature progs, the 6-10 Day Outlooks of Temperature and Precipitation Probability, and the 8-14 Day Outlooks of Temperature and Precipitation Probability, valid as of late Wednesday afternoon of the USDM release week. The NWS forecast web page used for this section is: http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/forecasts/. The Midwest: Short-term conditions continue to improve over the region, with many areas at or slightly above normal over the last several months for precipitation totals. D2 was removed from Kentucky and D1 was slightly improved in West Virginia and Ohio. Longer-term issues still exist in the region, and additional precipitation will be needed to continue improvements. The Southeast: With La Niña conditions continuing to develop and projected to be in place through the first part of 2009, the drought situation in Florida is expected to follow a La Niña pattern with warm and dry conditions throughout winter and into spring. D0 was expanded to include all of south Florida while D1 was expanded to the east. The drought designation was changed from H (hydrological) to AH (agricultural/hydrological) to show both short- and long-term concerns. D1 was introduced into southern Louisiana this week and D0 was expanded as well. Several indicators are showing the dryness and precipitation deficits over the last three months at 8-10 inches below normal. In extreme northeast Georgia, D3 was pushed south in response to recent rains. Reservoir levels in Georgia are still a concern. The Plains: Another dry week over the Plains and dryness over the last few months has started to impact the region. D0 was expanded over west Texas and into southeast New Mexico. Lubbock, Texas, recorded just 0.01 inches of precipitation in December, which followed only 0.08 inches in November for a total of 1.29 inches below normal for those two months. Several days in December, Lubbock reported blowing dust with the most intense days being December 8th and 14th. Crops are being impacted in Texas with winter wheat and oats being the main concern. The condition of winter wheat in Texas continues to decline with 46 percent rated poor to very poor while oats are 74 percent poor to very poor. The West: With a continuing active weather pattern, some areas of the region were improved while others showed some worsening. D0 was improved in western Oregon and extreme northern California and eastern Washington where recent increases in precipitation and snow have been recorded. D0 was expanded into central and north-central Washington as this region has not had the good snows that other regions in the area have received. In southern California, the D2 in the desert regions around Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties was improved slightly as the short-term rains in the last 90 days have been in the 200-300 percent of normal range. Long-term issues here, where precipitation deficits over the last 2-3 years are approaching 20 inches below normal, discouraged further improvements at this time. D0 was improved in southwest Colorado into northwest New Mexico, refining improvements made last week in response to the very good snowpack in this area. Hawaii: Recent precipitation has allowed for some improvements over Hawaii this week. In central Maui, D3 was improved to D2 while D0 over east Maui was improved as well. On the east side of the Big Island, a categorical improvement was made this week, and a slight improvement to the D2 and D3 conditions along the northeast slopes. On Oahu, the area that was D0 was changed to D1 due to continued water restrictions on irrigation water use at the Waimanalo Reservoir. December rainfall helped to improve reservoir levels, but irrigation water restrictions are still in place. Looking Ahead: During the next 5 days (January 7-11) a potent storm system will continue to move over the eastern United States, bringing with it widespread precipitation from the Southeast up into New England. Another system will also come ashore in the Pacific Northwest, bringing widespread precipitation through the region and into the northern Rocky Mountains. Temperatures during this time will be above normal for most of the United States outside of upper New England. Temperatures are expected to be 6-9 degrees Fahrenheit above normal over much of the West and Plains and 3 degrees Fahrenheit above normal in the Southeast. Temperatures in the Great Lakes and New England should be 3-9 degrees Fahrenheit below normal. The National Weather Service 6- to 10-day outlook for January 12-16 continues with the best chances for colder than normal temperatures over the eastern half of the country as a large trough settles in over the region. A ridge over the west will likely allow temperatures to warm up, with temperatures from Alaska through Arizona to be above normal. Dry conditions will dominate the western and central United States under the ridge, while there are good chances for above-normal precipitation in Alaska, the northern Plains, the Great Lakes, and portions of Florida. |
| Dryness Categories |
| D0 ... Abnormally Dry ... used for areas showing dryness but not yet in drought, or for areas recovering from drought.
Updated January 7, 2009 |
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