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Climate Research / Climate of 1999 / November / U.S. Regional/Statewide / Help |
National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationClimate of 1999 - NovemberU.S. Regional and Statewide Analyses Includes Year-To-Date Summary and Drought Update National Climatic Data Center, 15 December 1999 |
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Through climate analysis, National Climatic Data Center scientists have identified nine climatically consistent regions within the contiguous United States which are useful for putting current climate anomalies into an historical perspective.
PRECIPITATION AND TEMPERATURE RANKS, BASED ON THE PERIOD 1895-1999. 1 = DRIEST/COLDEST, 105 = WETTEST/WARMEST FOR NOVEMBER 1999, 105 = WETTEST/WARMEST FOR OCT-NOV 1999, 105 = WETTEST/WARMEST FOR JUN-NOV 1999, 104 = WETTEST/WARMEST FOR DEC 1998-NOV 1999. NOV OCT-NOV JUN-NOV DEC 1998- REGION 1999 1999 1999 NOV 1999 ------ ---- --------- --------- --------- PRECIPITATION: NORTHEAST 30 31 60 52 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 10 3 48 75 CENTRAL 16 9 3 14 SOUTHEAST 35 59 77 40 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 38 14 59 76 SOUTH 3 5 11 27 SOUTHWEST 3 1 69 61 NORTHWEST 57 47 30 77 WEST 44 31 33 25 NATIONAL 9 7 20 31 TEMPERATURE: NORTHEAST 101 78 103 100 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 105 99 92 100 CENTRAL 102 95 86 96 SOUTHEAST 88 76 75 92 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 105 103 90 98 SOUTH 101 97 86 98 SOUTHWEST 104 103 89 100 NORTHWEST 103 97 85 74 WEST 101 105 88 74 NATIONAL 105 104 96 101
PRECIPITATION (INCHES) DRIEST WETTEST NORMAL 1999 REGION VALUE YEAR VALUE YEAR PCPN PCPN ------ ---------- ---------- ------ ------ NORTHEAST 0.88 1917 6.34 1983 3.84 2.67 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 0.20 1904 4.03 1931 1.89 0.87 CENTRAL 0.71 1904 7.71 1985 3.53 1.68 SOUTHEAST 0.83 1931 8.39 1948 3.30 2.17 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 0.06 1939 1.63 1896 0.74 0.62 SOUTH 0.20 1949 5.21 1940 2.63 0.56 SOUTHWEST 0.06 1904 2.37 1905 0.90 0.12 NORTHWEST 0.30 1936 7.61 1909 3.78 3.86 WEST 0.01 1929 5.56 1926 2.22 1.48 NATIONAL 0.88 1917 3.76 1983 2.32 1.29* * PRELIMINARY VALUE, CONFIDENCE INTERVAL + OR - 0.20 INCHES TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F) COLDEST WARMEST NORMAL 1999 REGION VALUE YEAR VALUE YEAR TEMP TEMP ------ ---------- ---------- ------ ------ NORTHEAST 32.3 1901 44.7 1931 38.7 42.6 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 24.9 1959 40.6 1999 33.1 40.6 CENTRAL 35.9 1976 51.4 1931 44.2 49.5 SOUTHEAST 48.2 1976 62.4 1985 55.0 57.1 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 17.3 1985 40.4 1999 30.9 40.4 SOUTH 45.5 1976 58.7 1909 52.5 57.2 SOUTHWEST 36.1 1972 46.9 1949 41.4 46.3 NORTHWEST 27.2 1985 42.8 1899 37.0 42.3 WEST 40.0 1994 51.8 1949 46.0 50.1 NATIONAL 38.2 1911 48.1 1999 42.7 48.1* * PRELIMINARY VALUE, CONFIDENCE INTERVAL + OR - 0.6 DEG. F.
PRECIPITATION % AREA % AREA RIVER BASIN RANK DRY WET ----------- ------------- ------ ------ MISSOURI BASIN 7 0.0% 16.3% PACIFIC NORTHWEST BASIN 52 0.0% 0.6% CALIFORNIA RIVER BASIN 43 8.8% 0.0% GREAT BASIN 1 31.2% 0.0% UPPER COLORADO BASIN 2 0.0% 0.0% LOWER COLORADO BASIN 1 10.4% 0.0% RIO GRANDE BASIN 3 36.2% 3.9% ARKANSAS-WHITE-RED BASIN 12 2.5% 12.6% TEXAS GULF COAST BASIN 7 0.0% 0.0% SOURIS-RED-RAINY BASIN 2 0.0% 39.3% UPPER MISSISSIPPI BASIN 2 20.4% 0.0% LOWER MISSISSIPPI BASIN 14 35.6% 0.0% GREAT LAKES BASIN 10 14.2% 0.0% OHIO RIVER BASIN 23 74.8% 0.0% TENNESSEE RIVER BASIN 33 0.0% 0.0% NEW ENGLAND BASIN 32 0.0% 0.0% MID-ATLANTIC BASIN 33 3.1% 0.0% SOUTH ATLANTIC-GULF BASIN 58 2.6% 3.6%
REGION PRECIPITATION TEMPERATURE ------ ------------- ----------- NORTHEAST 73 99 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 83 101 CENTRAL 15 92 SOUTHEAST 44 80 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 79 99 SOUTH 24 96 SOUTHWEST 68 101 NORTHWEST 66 78 WEST 38 80 NATIONAL 33 101
PRECIPITATION (INCHES) DRIEST WETTEST NORMAL 1999 REGION VALUE YEAR VALUE YEAR PCPN PCPN ------ ---------- ---------- ------ ------ NORTHEAST 29.53 1941 48.24 1996 38.18 39.23 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 19.03 1910 35.01 1951 29.06 30.87 CENTRAL 28.89 1901 48.60 1950 39.61 34.41 SOUTHEAST 34.32 1954 59.24 1929 47.16 44.75 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 10.91 1934 22.15 1915 16.27 17.49 SOUTH 22.14 1956 44.31 1957 33.23 29.50 SOUTHWEST 7.31 1956 20.88 1941 12.68 13.38 NORTHWEST 13.75 1929 30.87 1983 23.47 24.08 WEST 7.94 1929 26.48 1983 14.18 12.47 NATIONAL 22.54 1910 31.05 1973 27.16 26.09 TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F) COLDEST WARMEST NORMAL 1999 REGION VALUE YEAR VALUE YEAR TEMP TEMP ------ ---------- ---------- ------ ------ NORTHEAST 45.3 1904 50.8 1998 47.8 49.9 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 42.2 1917 49.8 1931 45.8 48.2 CENTRAL 52.9 1979 58.8 1921 55.1 56.9 SOUTHEAST 62.2 1940 66.3 1921 63.8 65.0 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 42.1 1950 49.1 1934 45.5 47.5 SOUTH 61.9 1979 66.4 1921 63.7 65.7 SOUTHWEST 51.2 1917 56.4 1934 53.6 55.3 NORTHWEST 45.4 1955 52.0 1934 48.3 48.8 WEST 54.6 1912 59.4 1934 56.5 57.0 NATIONAL 52.4 1912 56.6 1934 54.2 55.8
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| Period | Named Storms | Hurricanes | Major Hurricanes | U.S. landfalling Hurricanes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 3 |
| Normal | 10 | 6 | 3 | 2 |
For a preliminary summary of the 1999 season as well as historical information for past seasons, visit the National Hurricane Center's web site. For maps of U.S. landfalling major hurricanes and special reports on recent noteworthy storms visit the NCDC Hurricanes page. Satellite images and loops of each of the 1999 storms as well as storms of the recent past are located at the NCDC Online Images web site. Additional information, including near real-time data can be found at the Weather Underground tropical page.
November 1999 Temperature and Precipitation
Based upon preliminary data, November 1999 was the warmest November on record for the West-North Central Region. High pressure dominated the region and kept cool air north of the region.
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High pressure dominated the South Region of the United States during November keeping most precipitation north and east of the region. November 1999 was the third driest such month since 1895.
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larger image Preliminary November precipitation data for the Primary Hard Red Winter Wheat Belt indicate that the five-month growing season was off to a dry start. The October-November 1999 period was the ninth driest such growing season to-date since 1895. The growing season runs through February.
November 1999 Statewide Temperature and Precipitation
Larger MapThirty-nine states ranked within the top ten warm portion of the historical distribution for November 1999 including the warmest November since 1895 for: Iowa, Kansas, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. No state ranked within the cool third portion of the distribution.
No state ranked within the top ten wet portion of the historical distribution while only two ranked within the wet third portion. It was the driest November on record for Arizona and New Mexico. Twelve other states ranked within the top ten dry portion of the distribution including:
Illinois - second driest North Dakota - second driest Texas - third driest Arkansas - fourth driest Indiana - fourth driest Mississippi - fourth driest
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January-November 1999 Temperature and Precipitation
Based upon preliminary data, the year-to-date 1999 was the fifth warmest such eleven-month period on record for the East-North Central Region. Just last year the region had the second warmest such eleven-month period on record.
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January-November 1999 was the 15th driest such eleven-month period since records began in 1895 for the Central Region and the first such period since 1992 to be below the long-term mean for precipitation.
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January-November 1999 Statewide Temperature and Precipitation
Larger MapTwenty-two states were within the top ten warm portion of the historical distribution for temperature for January-November 1999, including: Rhode Island - Warmest New Hampshire - 3rd warmest Maine - 4th warmest Massachusetts - 4th warmest Minnesota - 4th warmest Wyoming - 4th warmest No state ranked within the cool-third portion of the distribution.
January-November 1999 was the ninth driest such eleven-month period since 1895 for Kentucky and the tenth driest for Georgia. Thirteen other states ranked with the dry-third of the historical distribution. Seventeen states ranked within the wet-third portion of the distribution.
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December 1998-November 1999 Statewide Temperature and Precipitation
Larger MapTwenty-nine states were within the top ten warm portion of the historical distribution for temperature for the running twelve month period. Some December 1998-November 1999 ranks included: New Hampshire - Warmest Rhode Island - Warmest Massachusetts - second warmest Maine - second warmest Vermont - second warmest No state ranked within the cool third portion of the historical distribution.
Twelve states ranked within the wet-third portion of the distribution for December 1998-November 1999. It was the eighth driest such period for Georgia and the tenth driest such 12-month period on record for Ohio. Twelve other states ranked within the dry-third of the historical distribution.
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It should be emphasized that all of the temperature and precipitation ranks on these maps are based on preliminary data. The ranks will change when the final data are processed.
Palmer Drought IndicesThe Palmer Z Index shows how monthly moisture conditions depart from normal (short-term drought and wetness). The November 1999 pattern shows extremely dry conditions stretching from the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley into the southern Plains. Another area of extremely dry conditions stretched from the southern Rockies and Southwest to parts of the Pacific Northwest. The Palmer Z Index indicates that wet conditions occurred along the northern Pacific Coast and in parts of the northern Rockies.
larger animated image The animated maps show the geographical pattern of the moisture anomalies for the last 12 months. On these maps, the red shading denotes dry conditions while the green shading indicates wet conditions.
The Palmer Drought Index maps show long-term (cumulative) drought and wet spell conditions. The drought of 1999 continued its westward progression across the Ohio Valley and into the eastern Great Plains states. Likewise, as the months progressed, the area of very wet conditions in the Great Plains steadily decreased in size until only a few areas, from eastern Colorado to northern Minnesota, remained as of November 1999. Areas of long-term drought lingered in the Southeast, while hints of drought were appearing in the West and parts of the interior Northeast. Unusually warm temperatures in November increased the natural water "demand" (i.e., evapotranspiration) and exacerbated the drought conditions which resulted from low precipitation.
larger animated image The animated maps show how the geographical pattern of the long-term moisture conditions has changed over the last 12 months. On these maps, the red shading denotes drought conditions while the green shading indicates wet conditions.
Preliminary streamflow measurements by the United States Geological Survey revealed persistently low daily streamflows associated with drought from the Great Lakes to the southern Plains and Southeast during November. More streamflow information can be found at the United States Geological Survey's web page.
Central and Southern Regions Precipitation Deficits
The Central and Southern regions of the U.S. have experienced extremely dry conditions for each of the last five months.In the Central region (which stretches from the Ohio to Tennessee valleys, and central Appalachians to the mid-Mississippi valley), this dry spell follows a 12-month period (July 1998-June 1999) of alternating wet and dry months (see bottom left graph). July-November 1999 ranked as the second driest such five-month period on record and marks the third consecutive July-November with precipitation below the long-term mean. November 1999 ranked as the 16th driest November since 1895, and October-November ranked as the ninth driest such two-month period. In the graph below right, the dark blue curve shows the values for each year, and the smooth red curve shows the decade-scale variations.
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In the Southern region (which stretches from Kansas to Texas, then eastward to Mississippi), this dry spell follows a 12-month period (July 1998-June 1999) that was generally wet (see bottom left graph). July-November 1999 ranked as the third driest such five-month period since 1895, and was comparable to the worst years of the 1950's. However, the southern Plains drought of the 1950's was characterized by year-after-year of extremely dry conditions, as seen in the graph below right. Other statistics for 1999: third driest November and fifth driest October-November on record.
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Current and historical drought information can be found at the Web Page for the National Drought Mitigation Center. The Center monitors current droughts both in the United States and worldwide.Damage due to the drought has been summarized by NOAA and the Office of Global Programs in the Climatological Impacts section of the Climate Information Project. Crop impact information can be found at the USDA NASS (National Agricultural Statistics Service) and Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin pages. Drought statements by local National Weather Service Offices can be found at the NWS Hydrologic Information Center. Drought threat assessments and other information can be found at NOAA's Drought Information Center.
For more information, refer to ...References:
Thomas R. Karl and Albert J. Koscielny, 1982: "Drought in the United States: 1895-1981." Journal of Climatology, vol. 2, pp. 313-329.
Thomas R. Karl and Walter James Koss, 1984: "Regional and National Monthly, Seasonal, and Annual Temperature Weighted by Area, 1895-1983." Historical Climatology Series 4-3, National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC, 38 pp.
NOAA's National Climatic Data Center is the world's largest active archive of weather data. The preliminary temperature and precipitation rankings are available from the center by calling: 828-271-4800.
NOAA works closely with the academic and science communities on climate-related research projects to increase the understanding of El Niño and improve forecasting techniques. NOAA's Climate Prediction Center monitors, analyzes and predicts climate events ranging from weeks to seasons for the nation. NOAA also operates the network of data buoys and satellites that provide vital information about the ocean waters, and initiates research projects to improve future climate forecasts.
For all climate questions other than questions concerning this report, please contact the National Climatic Data Center's Climate Services Division:
Climate Services DivisionFor further information on the historical climate perspective presented in this report, contact:
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4876
phone: 828-271-4800
email: ncdc.orders@noaa.gov
William Brown-or-
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: william.brown@noaa.gov
Mike Changery
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: mchangry@ncdc.noaa.gov
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/1999/nov/us_regional.html 
