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Contents of This Report:
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.
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Seventeen states ranked within the warm-third portion of the historical distribution for June 2000 while only Nevada ranked within the top ten warm with the third warmest June since 1895.
Eight states, all in the Mississippi Valley and South Region, ranked within the cool-third of the historical distribution. |
| It was the 18th driest June on record for Idaho. Six other states ranked within the dry third of the distribution.
It was the fifth wettest June on record for Oklahoma and the sixth wettest June since 1895 for New Mexico. Twenty-three other states ranked within the wet third portion of the distribution. |
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June Regional Highlights
Based upon preliminary data, June 2000 was the eighth warmest such month since 1895 for the West Region.
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larger imagePreliminary data indicate that June 2000 was the 30th coolest such month since 1895 for the South Region.
It was the 11th wettest June on record for the South Region. A combination of abundant cloud cover and precipitation allowed the region to be not only wetter than normal, but cooler than normal as well (see above graphic). Three of the last four such months have been wetter than the long-term mean.
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larger imagePreliminary data indicate that June 2000 was the 30th driest such month since 1895 for the West-North Central Region.
Preliminary data indicate that precipitation for the growing season-to-date, March-June 2000, averaged slightly above the long-term mean for the Primary Corn and Soybean Belt. The last six such periods have been above the long-term mean.
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January-June 2000 Statewide Ranks
Larger MapForty-six states ranked within the warm-third portion of the historical distribution for January-June 2000 while twenty-five states ranked within the top ten warm. It was the warmest such year-to-date on record for New Mexico. It was the second warmest year-to-date for:
- Arizona
- Colorado
- Nevada
- Texas, and
- Utah
No state ranked within the cool-third of the historical distribution.
January-June 2000 was the third driest such period on record for Florida. Nine other states ranked within the dry-third portion of the distribution. It was the second wettest January-June on record for New York and the seventh wettest January-June on record for Vermont. Seventeen other states ranked within the wet-third portion of the distribution.
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January-June Regional Highlights
Preliminary data indicate that the year-to-date, January-June 2000, was the warmest such period on record for the Southwest Region. The last 16 such six-month periods have been at to much above the long-term mean.
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larger imagePreliminary data indicate that January-June 2000 was the second warmest such period since 1895 for the South Region. The last three such six-month periods have been much above the long-term mean.
Preliminary data indicate that the year-to-date, January-June 2000, was the tenth wettest such period on record for the Northeast Region.
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larger imagePreliminary data indicate that January-June 2000 was the 14th driest such period since 1895 for the Southeast Region. Only two of the last twelve such periods have been much below the long-term mean.
Regional Drought Watch - June
The Palmer Z Index shows how monthly moisture conditions depart from normal (short-term drought and wetness). The June 2000 pattern shows areas of extremely dry conditions located in the northern Rockies, southwestward to the Great Basin and eastward to the panhandle of Nebraska. Additional moisture deficits were also noted in the Piedmont of the Carolinas, central and western Georgia, east-central Alabama, most of Florida, and a good portion of the Southwest. Unusually wet conditions were centered over the southern Plains, mid-Mississippi Valley, western and central Great Lakes states and portions of the Northeast.
larger animated imageThe 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. By the end of June 2000, long-term drought continued across parts of the inter-mountain West and most of the Southeast from South Carolina to central Texas. Patchy long-term wet conditions were found in New England and areas in the northern and southern Plains.
larger animated imageThe 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.
The Palmer Crop Moisture Index is computed on a weekly basis by the National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center and is useful for following the impact of precipitation anomalies on agriculture. The animated Crop Moisture Index maps show the weekly change in topsoil moisture conditions for 2000 from March 4th through July 1st, the growing season to date.
larger animated imageThe animated maps show how the geographical pattern of the long-term moisture conditions has changed over the last four months. On these maps, the red shading denotes dry conditions while the green shading indicates wet conditions.
Southeast Region Precipitation Deficit
Dry conditions persisted across much of the southeastern United States. June 2000 was drier than normal for the Southeast Region, marking the eighth consecutive month with precipitation near to much below normal. This eight-month period (November 1999-June 2000) ranked as the ninth driest November-June period since 1895. Other ranks for consecutive months ending in June 2000 include: seventh driest May-June, eighth driest February-June, and ninth driest December-June.
larger imageThe Palmer Drought Index (PDI) has been used for U.S. drought monitoring for the last 30 years. It is based on a water budget model that incorporates the balance between water supply (i.e., precipitation), soil moisture, runoff, and water demand (computed from estimates for evaporation and transpiration). The PDI is a long-term drought index which incorporates the current conditions (i.e., for the current month) and the past conditions (the preceding several months). The PDI is useful for showing how the current drought compares to past droughts.
larger imageUnusually wet conditions occurred in the Southeast for much of 1994-1997. The wetness abruptly ended in mid-1998, with moderate to severe drought rapidly developing by the end of that year. With a minor interruption during the end of 1999, severe drought has persisted across this region for about the last two years. The present drought situation is comparable, in both magnitude and duration, to the droughts of the 1980's and 1990's. However, other droughts, especially those of the 1920's, 1930's, and 1950's, lasted longer and were more severe.
The Drought In Hawaii
Persistent but weaker than normal trade winds brought ample rain showers to the windward areas of the Hawaiian Islands during June 2000, which helped ease the drought situation in some areas. However, rainfall totals for the year-to-date remained below normal across the islands, with most rain gauges ranging from 20 to 70 percent of normal. Severe to extreme drought continued in many parts of Hawaii. At the Honolulu International Airport, for example, only four months since January 1997 have seen above-normal rainfall. The last ten years have been especially dry. Nine of the last ten July-June periods have had much below-normal rainfall, with the last three (July 1997-June 1998, July 1998-June 1999, and July 1999-June 2000) ranking at or near record dry levels. Additional details can be found at the web page of the National Weather Service Hawaii office.
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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.
June Precipitation and Temperature Ranks, Extremes and Normals
Table 1 shows precipitation and temperature ranks for each of the 9 regions and the nation for June 2000, the two-month period of May-June 2000, the six months of January-June 2000, and the past 12 months, July 1999-June 2000.PRECIPITATION AND TEMPERATURE RANKS, BASED ON THE PERIOD 1895-2000. 1 = DRIEST/COLDEST, 106 = WETTEST/WARMEST FOR JUNE 2000, 106 = WETTEST/WARMEST FOR MAY-JUNE 2000, 106 = WETTEST/WARMEST FOR JAN-JUNE 2000, 105 = WETTEST/WARMEST FOR JULY 1999-JUNE 2000. JUNE MAY-JUNE JAN-JUNE JULY 1999- REGION 2000 2000 2000 JUNE 2000 ------ ---- --------- --------- --------- PRECIPITATION: NORTHEAST 84 92 98 96 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 84 92 70 47 CENTRAL 90 73 52 13 SOUTHEAST 44 7 14 13 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 30 36 45 26 SOUTH 96 70 46 12 SOUTHWEST 84 48 45 47 NORTHWEST 36 53 58 39 WEST 51 52 79 42 NATIONAL 93 62 44 16 TEMPERATURE: NORTHEAST 51 70 93 99 EAST NORTH CENTRAL 31 66 102 102 CENTRAL 39 75 96 101 SOUTHEAST 67 91 80 91 WEST NORTH CENTRAL 58 75 100 104 SOUTH 30 88 105 102 SOUTHWEST 83 104 106 104 NORTHWEST 85 85 97 100 WEST 99 105 104 102 NATIONAL 73 102 106 105It should be emphasized that all of the temperature and precipitation ranks and values in Tables 1 through 5 are based on preliminary data. The ranks will change when the final data are processed.
Table 2 shows historical extremes for June, the 1961-1990 normal, and the June 2000 value for each of the 9 regions and the contiguous U.S. for precipitation and temperature. It should be noted that the 2000 values will change when the final data are processed.
PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
DRIEST WETTEST NORMAL 2000
REGION VALUE YEAR VALUE YEAR PCPN PCPN
------ ---------- ---------- ------ ------
NORTHEAST 1.60 1988 8.53 1972 3.84 4.43
EAST NORTH CENTRAL 1.41 1910 6.68 1967 3.89 4.98
CENTRAL 1.03 1988 9.10 1928 3.95 5.43
SOUTHEAST 2.20 1931 8.37 1900 4.86 4.44
WEST NORTH CENTRAL 1.25 1933 5.27 1947 2.73 2.35
SOUTH 0.98 1933 6.85 1989 3.66 5.27
SOUTHWEST 0.16 1916 1.93 1927 0.93 1.23
NORTHWEST 0.32 1919 3.02 1947 1.48 1.13
WEST 0.01 1935 1.14 1963 0.46 0.31
NATIONAL 1.43 1933 4.19 1928 2.84 3.33*
* PRELIMINARY VALUE, CONFIDENCE
INTERVAL + OR - 0.25 INCHES
TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
COLDEST WARMEST NORMAL 2000
REGION VALUE YEAR VALUE YEAR TEMP TEMP
------ ---------- ---------- ------ ------
NORTHEAST 60.3 1958 68.6 1943 64.4 64.8
EAST NORTH CENTRAL 59.5 1969 72.4 1933 65.3 64.0
CENTRAL 66.2 1903 77.6 1952 71.3 71.0
SOUTHEAST 73.0 1955 80.8 1952 75.8 77.1
WEST NORTH CENTRAL 56.7 1951 71.6 1988 63.2 62.4
SOUTH 72.1 1903 83.8 1953 77.6 77.0
SOUTHWEST 63.4 1907 72.8 1994 68.1 69.8
NORTHWEST 54.9 1953 64.8 1918 59.9 61.1
WEST 62.2 1944 74.0 1918 67.7 71.1
NATIONAL* 66.5 1903 72.4 1933 69.3 70.0
* National Temperature Values based
on USHCN
January-June Precipitation and Temperature Ranks, Extremes and Normals
Table 3 shows precipitation and temperature ranks for each of the 9 regions and the nation for January-June 2000. Based on the period 1895-2000.
1 = DRIEST/COLDEST, 106 = WETTEST/HOTTEST.
REGION PRECIPITATION TEMPERATURE
------ ------------- -----------
NORTHEAST 98 93
EAST NORTH CENTRAL 70 102
CENTRAL 52 96
SOUTHEAST 14 80
WEST NORTH CENTRAL 45 100
SOUTH 46 105
SOUTHWEST 45 106
NORTHWEST 58 97
WEST 79 104
NATIONAL 44 106
Table 4 shows historical extremes for January-June, the 1961-1990 normal, and the January-June 2000 value for each of the 9 regions and the contiguous U.S. for precipitation and temperature. It should be noted that the 2000 values will change when the final data are processed.
PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
DRIEST WETTEST NORMAL 2000
REGION VALUE YEAR VALUE YEAR PCPN PCPN
------ ---------- ---------- ------ ------
NORTHEAST 13.83 1941 26.76 1998 19.68 23.54
EAST NORTH CENTRAL 8.07 1988 18.00 1908 13.76 14.91
CENTRAL 14.17 1988 29.56 1950 21.45 21.95
SOUTHEAST 15.72 1898 32.59 1929 25.62 19.65
WEST NORTH CENTRAL 5.82 1934 12.17 1944 9.10 8.73
SOUTH 11.62 1925 26.73 1957 18.03 17.48
SOUTHWEST 3.20 1972 10.94 1905 5.41 5.27
NORTHWEST 8.06 1924 19.94 1953 14.62 14.95
WEST 4.55 1924 20.40 1998 9.49 12.14
NATIONAL 11.12 1988 17.87 1998 14.65 14.54
TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
COLDEST WARMEST NORMAL 2000
REGION VALUE YEAR VALUE YEAR TEMP TEMP
------ ---------- ---------- ------ ------
NORTHEAST 37.4 1907 44.8 1998 40.4 42.4
EAST NORTH CENTRAL 32.7 1912 44.0 1987 37.6 41.4
CENTRAL 44.3 1978 53.4 1921 48.5 51.3
SOUTHEAST 56.4 1978 62.1 1949 58.8 60.8
WEST NORTH CENTRAL 32.9 1917 43.3 1987 38.3 41.8
SOUTH 55.5 1979 62.2 1911 58.3 61.6
SOUTHWEST 43.2 1917 51.8 2000 47.6 51.8
NORTHWEST 39.1 1955 48.5 1934 43.0 45.1
WEST 47.4 1933 55.1 1934 51.1 54.4
NATIONAL* 45.5 1917 51.6 2000 48.4 51.6
* National Temperature Values based
on USHCN
Water Year River Basin Statistics, October 1999-June 2000
Table 5 shows statistics for selected river basins: Precipitation rankings are for October 1999-June 2000, where 1 = driest, and 105 = wettest, based on the period 1895 to 2000. Also shown is the areal percent of the basin experiencing severe or extreme long-term (Palmer) drought, and areal percent of the basin experiencing severe or extreme long-term (Palmer) wet conditions, as of June 2000.PRECIPITATION % AREA % AREA RIVER BASIN RANK DRY WET ----------- ------------- ------ ------ MISSOURI BASIN 14 16.9% 11.9% PACIFIC NORTHWEST BASIN 48 12.2% 0.0% CALIFORNIA RIVER BASIN 51 28.8% 0.0% GREAT BASIN 21 34.5% 0.0% UPPER COLORADO BASIN 7 23.6% 0.0% LOWER COLORADO BASIN 4 51.7% 0.0% RIO GRANDE BASIN 17 17.9% 0.0% ARKANSAS-WHITE-RED BASIN 56 0.0% 3.7% TEXAS GULF COAST BASIN 31 9.3% 0.0% SOURIS-RED-RAINY BASIN 26 0.0% 22.8% UPPER MISSISSIPPI BASIN 36 0.0% 0.0% LOWER MISSISSIPPI BASIN 14 27.1% 0.0% GREAT LAKES BASIN 68 0.0% 0.0% OHIO RIVER BASIN 41 0.4% 0.0% TENNESSEE RIVER BASIN 18 0.0% 0.0% NEW ENGLAND BASIN 71 0.0% 7.7% MID-ATLANTIC BASIN 73 0.0% 10.3% SOUTH ATLANTIC-GULF BASIN 9 37.4% 0.0%The river basin regions are defined by the U.S. Water Resources Council.
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.
Historical precipitation and temperature ranking maps are also available on the Internet courtesy of the Climate Prediction Center.
NOAA works closely with the academic and scientific 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. The long lead climate outlooks are available from the Climate Prediction Center.
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
Jay Lawrimore
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: jay.lawrimore@noaa.gov
NCDC / Climate Research / Climate of 2000 / June / U.S. Regional/Statewide / Search / Help
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