Drought
Information for North Texas
The
Drought Information Statement is a summary of the current state of the
drought, including precipitation deficits, local impacts, outlooks, and other
information.
Burn Bans Continue
Across North Texas
(Click the image
below to enlarge.)
Current Drought
Indices
U.S.
Drought Monitor
The U.S.
Drought Monitor was established to assess drought severity in a subjective
but uniform manner. Since 1999, various agencies, including those within
the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the
National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), have pooled their expertise with that of
academia and local interests to more accurately categorize drought.
Incorporating the input of all these entities, the National Drought Mitigation
Center (NDMC) issues a weekly assessment of drought severity on a national
scale. Click the image below
to enlarge, or click here
for a closer look at Texas.
Palmer Drought
Severity Index
The Palmer
Drought Severity Index measures primarily meteorological drought
(precipitation versus normal). Click here
for an image of Texas.
Keetch-Byram Drought
Index
The Keetch-Byram
Drought Index is a drought statistic specifically designed to assess fire
danger. Click on
the image to enlarge, or click here
for a county-average map.
Data and Other
Information
Radar
Precipitation Estimates
A complete
suite of radar-estimated precipitation data is now available through the
National Weather Service's Advanced
Hydrologic Prediction Service. Images are available for month-to-date
and year-to-date totals, among other selectable time frames. Menus below each image allow for user-customized data, including
departure from normal. (Click the image below to access images tailored
to North Texas.)
Current
Lake Levels
The daily Hydrologic
Summary contains a list of river and reservoir levels. Toward the
bottom of the product, the current lake levels are listed alongside their
normal (conservation) pool levels. The difference between the two is the
current deficit/surplus for a reservoir.
Drought Impact
Reporter from the National Drought Mitigation Center
Drought severity is inherently linked to the
impacts of the drought. Such impacts
include agricultural issues, hydrologic deficits, increased fire danger,
and other economic and social consequences. These impacts are not
easily quantified with simple statistics.
The
National Drought Mitigation Center developed the Drought Impact Reporter
as a database for reported drought impacts. The impacts are
classified by category, with the number of reports emphasizing a drought's
significance without attributing specific statistics to the reports.
(Click on a county of interest for further information.)
Data from Cooperative
Observers
Click on the map below, or choose a location from the
menu beneath it.
Forecasts and
Drought Outlooks
U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook
This
outlook from the Climate
Prediction Center (CPC) predicts the future evolution of drought,
including the potential for development or relief. (Click map to enlarge.)
How Much
Rain Do We Need?
For
areas currently in drought, the image below shows the amount of
precipitation needed to return to the "near normal" Palmer
category. (Click to enlarge.)
What
Can We Expect the Next Several Months?
CPC's
3-month outlooks present the likelihood of receiving a precipitation total
that differs significantly from normal. For precipitation, green areas
denote parts of the country with an increased chance of being in the wettest
tercile, or the wettest third of historical data. Similarly, brown areas
denote parts of the country that are projected to have an elevated chance of
being in the driest tercile. Where neither color is shaded, CPC has
concluded that there is no strong signal to determine an accentuated chance of
being in either the driest or wettest tercile. This does not mean that
near normal precipitation is expected, but simply that the 3-month period is
just as likely to be in the wettest tercile as it is to be in the driest
tercile.
Quick Links
National
Integrated Drought Information System
National
Drought Mitigation Center
CPC's
U.S. Drought Assessment
Water
Restrictions
(at TCEQ)
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National Weather Service
Fort Worth Weather Forecast Office
3401 Northern Cross Blvd.
Fort Worth, TX 76137
Page last modified: 09/04/08
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