DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EL PASO TEXAS / SANTA TERESA NEW MEXICO 900 1000 PM THU JAN 08 2009 ...NO DROUGHT CONDITIONS EXIST NOR ARE FORECAST THROUGH MARCH 2009 FOR ALL AREAS IN THE EL PASO FORECAST AREA OF SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO AND FAR WEST TEXAS... SYNOPSIS... A GENEROUS MONSOON SEASON AND CONTINUED NEUTRAL ENSO CONDITIONS PROVIDED AT LEAST NORMAL TO ABOVE NORMAL RAINFALL CONDITIONS FOR MOST OF THE BORDERLAND FOR 2008. THIS RESULTED IN MOST OF THE DESERT LOWLANDS RECEIVING 100-110% NORMAL PRECIPITATION WITH THE GILA WILDERNESS AND THE SOUTHERN SACRAMENTOS GETTING UP TO 150%+ OF NORMAL VALUES. EL PASO'S ANNUAL RAINFALL FOR 2008 WAS 5% ABOVE NORMAL. ALSO ON A POSITIVE NOTE...THE ALBUQUERQUE OFFICE OF THE NWS HAS NOTED THAT THE SNOWPACK IN NORTHERN NEW MEXICO AND SOUTHERN COLORADO SO FAR THIS WINTER SEASON IS RUNNING AROUND 170% OF NORMAL DUE TO A LONG SERIES OF WINTER CYCLONES THAT TRACKED FROM HE PACIFIC NORTHWEST SOUTHEASTWARD INTO THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ROCKIES. THE U.S. SEASONAL DROUGHT OUTLOOK FOR OUR ENTIRE CWA IS FOR NO DROUGHT CONDITIONS THROUGH MARCH 2009. THE CURRENT U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR MAP CAN BE FOUND AT...
http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html
IMPACTS... FIRE DANGER CATEGORIES REMAIN GENERALLY AT MODERATE TO ISOLATED HIGH AREAS. REMEMBER THAT DROUGHT IS THE LEADING HAZARD IN ECONOMIC LOSES EACH YEAR IN THE UNITED STATES. PRECIPITATION/TEMPERATURE OUTLOOKS... THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER OF NOAA FORECASTS ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES FOR THE MONTHS OF JANUARY THROUGH AND MAY FOR FAR WEST TEXAS AND SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO ALONG WITH BELOW NORMAL CHANCES FOR PRECIPITATION. THE CPC OF NOAA IS NOTING A DEVELOPING LA NINA CONDITION THAT IS LIKELY TO CONTINUE IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE INTO THE SPRING OF 2009. WITH A WEAK TO POSSIBLY MODERATE LA NINA DEVELOPING BY SPRING...DRIER THAN THAT NORMAL CONDITIONS USUALLY PREVAIL ACROSS OUR AREA REGION PARTICULARLY DURING THE FALL...WINTER...AND SPRING SEASONS. LA NINA GENERALLY DOES NOT SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECT THE SUMMER RAINFALL SIGNATURE. THUS...THERE EXISTS A POTENTIAL FOR A DRIER SPRING WHICH COULD LEAD TO SLIGHTLY MORE DUSTIER SPRING WIND EVENTS FOR THE BORDERLAND. NEXT ISSUANCE DATE... THIS PRODUCT WILL USUALLY BE UPDATED AT LEAST ONCE A MONTH OR MORE OFTEN IF SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN WEATHER...WATER SUPPLY...OR DROUGHT CONDITIONS OCCUR. RELATED WEB SITES... ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON CURRENT OR PAST DROUGHT CONDITIONS MAY BE FOUND AT THE FOLLOWING WEB ADDRESSES...
U.S DROUGHT MONITOR... http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html
NWS PRECIPITATION ANALYSIS PAGE... http://water.weather.gov/
PUBLIC LANDS INFORMATION CENTER... http://publiclands.org/firenews/pressreleases/NM.php
CLIMATOLOGY AND PALEOCLIMATOLOGY LINKS... http://www.drought.unl.edu/whatis/climlinks.htm
WESTERN REGIONAL CLIMATE CENTER... http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/
CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER... http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/
ADDITIONAL RIVER INFORMATION...
NWS... http://ahps.srh.noaa.gov/index.php?wfo=abq
USGS... http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nm/nwis/current?type=flow ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS... THE U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR IS A MULTI-AGENCY EFFORT INVOLVING THE NOAA NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AND NATIONAL CLIMATIC DATA CENTER... THE USDA...STATE AND REGIONAL CLIMATE CENTERS AND THE NATIONAL DROUGHT MITIGATION CENTER. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE 7955 AIRPORT ROAD SANTA TERESA NM 88008 PHONE...505-589-4088 DAVID NOVLAN CLIMATE FOCAL POINT Dave.Novlan@noaa.gov http://www.srh.noaa.gov/elpaso/ NOVLAN