Sun, 22 Jul 2007 16:09:24 EDT http://www.noaawatch.gov/themes/drought.php NOAA Information on Drought noaawatch@noaa.gov http://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html en-us noaawatch@noaa.gov http://www.noaawatch.gov/images/rss/drought.gif http://www.noaawatch.gov/themes/drought.php NOAA Logo http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/expert_assessment/seasonal_drought.html The footprint of drought on the U.S. Drought Monitor map shifted south and west during the week that ended April 30, intensifying in southeast Colorado, New Mexico and other spots. Statistics released with the map showed a decrease in the overall area of the 48 contiguous states in moderate drought or worse, to 46.90 percent, from 47.34 percent the week before, but some areas intensified. The area in severe drought or worse increased, to 32.73 percent, from 31.75 percent the area in extreme drought or worse decreased to 13.96 percent, from 14.72 percent and the area in exceptional drought increased to 3.4 percent from 2.59 percent. Drought coverage is now down 14.19 percentage points since the beginning of 2013 and down 18.55 points from the record high of 65.45 percent on September 25, 2012. Fri, 03 May 2013 07:11:19 EDT Nancy.Merckle@noaa.gov http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/expert_assessment/seasonal_drought.html The U.S. Drought Monitor showed drought shifting incrementally to the west on the map for the week that ended April 23, as drought-busting rains drenched the Midwest. Flooding has now replaced drought as the Midwest’s greatest imminent concern. The Mississippi River rose to one of its five highest levels on record from just south of Moline, Illinois, to just north of St. Louis, Missouri. Farther west, rain and snow continued to chip away at long-term drought across the eastern Plains, but drought remained entrenched in most areas from California to the High Plains. Fri, 26 Apr 2013 06:32:47 EDT Nancy.Merckle@noaa.gov http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/expert_assessment/seasonal_drought.html Fifty-one percent of the continental U.S., primarily in the central and western regions, is in moderate to exceptional drought. Drought conditions are expected to persist with new drought development in California, the Southwest, the southern Rockies, Texas, and Florida. The outlook favors some improvement in the Midwest, the northern and central Great Plains, Georgia, the Carolinas, and northern Alaska. Thu, 21 Mar 2013 14:18:45 EDT andy.allegra@noaa.gov http://www.drought.gov/portal/server.pt/community/drought_indicators/us_drought_monitor Drought improved in central and southern Georgia and South Carolina and in south Florida, as well as eastern Texas, the Texas Panhandle and central Arizona. Drought got worse in northern and central Florida, south Texas and the Oklahoma Panhandle, and a new area of abnormal dryness, the precursor to drought, was introduced in northern California. Drought over the Plains was unchanged. Over the next week to ten days, several storm systems are anticipated to come out of the Southwest and onto the Plains. The moisture associated with these storms may not make it into the frozen ground, but the runoff associated with them will improve some of the reservoir, pond, and lake levels that are also hurting. The winter precipitation deficits are so great throughout the Plains that as we get closer to the spring thaw, we would need several storms to make a significant dent in the ongoing drought. Fri, 22 Feb 2013 10:13:23 EST Nancy.Merckle@noaa.gov http://www.drought.gov/portal/server.pt/community/drought_indicators/us_drought_monitor Drought eased slightly in parts of the country from Hawaii to Virginia, intensified in other areas, and was nearly unchanged over the hardest-hit areas of the Plains, in the week that ended Feb. 5, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. A powerful storm Jan. 29 and 30 brought much-needed precipitation to the Southeast and to parts of the South and southern Plains. Precipitation eased drought in some parts of the Midwest, particularly in areas where soils were not frozen and moisture could seep into the ground. Snowpack improved in some areas but is still below normal in much of the West. All Hawaiian islands have seen some improvement in drought after two weeks of good rain. Some states saw drought ease in some areas but intensify in others. Drought eased in western Colorado but intensified in the eastern part of the state, while in Oklahoma, drought intensified in the Panhandle but eased to the east. Fri, 08 Feb 2013 07:25:57 EST Nancy.Merckle@noaa.gov http://www.drought.gov/portal/server.pt/community/drought_indicators/us_drought_monitor Drought declined across the United States as winter weather brought snow and rain in the week that ended Jan. 15, although a few areas continued to intensify, according to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor map. The area of the entire United States plus Puerto Rico shown in moderate drought or worse declined to 49.57 percent from 50.74 percent the week before the area in severe or worse drought declined to 33.72 percent from 34.89 percent the area in extreme drought shrunk to 16.22 percent from 17.4 percent the preceding week. This week’s map shows improvements in north-central and northwest Arkansas, northwestern Georgia, western North Carolina, Virginia, south and southeast Missouri, and the Texas Panhandle. It shows worsening drought in southern Georgia, northern Florida, north-central Oklahoma, and Colorado. There was minimal change in the High Plains, where exceptional drought has been centered over Nebraska for several months. Wed, 23 Jan 2013 07:59:05 EST Nancy.Merckle@noaa.gov http://www.drought.gov/portal/server.pt/community/drought_indicators/us_drought_monitor The remnant of Hurricane Sandy erased all moderate drought and abnormally dry conditions in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, with the exception of areas of central Virginia and upstate New York. Statistics released with the U.S. Drought Monitor map showed that 50.35 percent of the country was in moderate drought or worse, down slightly from 51.71 percent the week before. The map showed 32.01 percent in severe drought or worse, down from 32.32 percent a week earlier 15.92 percent in extreme drought or worse, down from 16.32 percent the week before and 4.91 percent in exceptional drought, an increase from 4.88 the preceding week. As of Oct. 30, 4.97 percent of the Northeast was categorized as abnormally dry, and there was no drought in the area. Thu, 01 Nov 2012 12:37:43 EDT nancy.merckle@noaa.gov http://www.drought.gov/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_2_693_208_0_43/http%3B/droughtmonitor.unl.edu/monitor.html The United States Department of Agriculture Drought Portal provides resources and information related to the current drought crisis from across the Government. Throughout much of the country, communities are struggling with one of the worst droughts to strike the U.S. in decades. The lack of rain and high temperatures have done considerable damage to crops -- particularly those in the Midwest. USDA and other federal agencies are taking steps to help farmers, ranchers, and small businesses wrestling with this crisis. Wed, 12 Sep 2012 10:55:33 EDT ronald.c.jones@noaa.gov http://www.drought.gov This U.S. Drought Monitor week saw a few notable improvements and some serious degradation. Temperatures have generally been below normal this week from the east side of the Rockies to the East Coast, with the exception of Texas, the Southeast Coast, and northern New England. This has helped ease drought impacts, particularly in those areas where beneficial precipitation fell. One such area is in the Ohio Valley where parts of Indiana saw more than five inches of rain. This is the second straight week of beneficial precipitation for some of these areas and this precipitation has largely alleviated Exceptional Drought from the state, despite lingering impacts still being felt. Last week, drought gripped slightly less of the agricultural land in the country with 85% of the U.S. corn crop, 83% of soybeans, 63% of hay, and 71% of cattle areas experiencing drought. Thu, 23 Aug 2012 10:56:00 EDT ronald.c.jones@noaa.gov http://www.usda.gov/drought The USDA offers disaster and drought assistance information from their drought web portal - www.usda.gov/drought Wed, 01 Aug 2012 09:12:02 EDT ronald.c.jones@noaa.gov http://www.drought.gov California's ongoing water crisis is a major national priority, akin to restoring Florida's Everglades or the Chesapeake Bay on the East Coast, a top Obama administration official said Wednesday. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar intends to hold a public meeting in Washington next month to discuss plans to save the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the freshwater estuary that supplies drinking water to two-thirds of Californians and is one of the most important wildlife habitats on the West Coast, Deputy Interior Secretary David Hayes said. Hayes was in Sacramento to update farmers, city dwellers and environmentalists about federal efforts to free up water for crops and fisheries as the state hobbles through its third year of drought. Thu, 13 Aug 2009 10:32:55 EDT carol.baldwin@noaa,gov http://www.drought.gov/portal/server.pt The Southeastern drought region should continue to see improvement, with the best odds for relief extending across the northern part of the drought area as well as along the coast. More limited improvement is expected over the longer run in the southern parts of the drought region due to seasonal forecasts of drier weather by April. Farther west, drought is forecast to persist over central Texas and in the western Oklahoma Panhandle region, with the odds still favoring expansion into west Texas and eastern New Mexico. Forecasts for drier weather have led to the Outlook showing persisting drought over southern California and southern Nevada, although deep mountain snow pack will boost water supplies this spring. Thu, 06 Mar 2008 11:10:35 EST ronald.c.jones@noaa.gov