Agricultural News
Rare Winter Storm Improves Drought Conditions in Parts of Texas And Extreme Drought Exits Oklahoma Panhandle
Thu, 14 Jan 2021 15:14:31 CST
According to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor, early January precipitation helped improve some drought conditions, especially in Texas.
An unusual winter storm track brought a surprisingly large amount of snow to southwest Texas east to Louisiana.
The rain and snow helped chip away at the extreme (D3) and exceptional (D4) drought areas of the western part of Texas.
Drought conditions deteriorated in far south Texas which has experienced warmer than normal temperatures, combined with less than 25 percent of normal precipitation over the last 90 days.
Much of the High Plains experienced relatively warm, dry conditions this past week, leading to expansion of moderate drought (D1) in north central Kansas.
Some drought improvement was made in southeast Colorado where precipitation has been above normal much of the past several weeks.
To view the U.S. Drought map, click here.
For Oklahoma, extreme drought (D3) has disappeared from Cimarron County in the northwest Oklahoma Panhandle for the first time in months.
There is still a lingering patch of D3 hanging on in Hollis County in the southwest corner.
Statewide, more than 68 percent of the state is drought free this week, about a one percent improvement from last week.
Three months ago, the drought free coverage in Oklahoma was 41.46 percent.
To view the Oklahoma drought map, click here.
The latest drought outlook calls for substantial improvement for much of Oklahoma.
To view the monthly drought outlook map for January from the Climate Prediction Center, click here.
The outlook for next week calls for average temperatures and above average precipitation for much of the state.
To view the 6-10-day temperature outlook, click here.
To view the 6-10-day precipitation outlook, click here.
The U.S. Drought Monitor Map is developed through a partnership between the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
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