 NCDC / Climate Mon. /
Climate-2007 / Feb / U.S. Drought / Help
Climate of 2007 - February
U.S. Drought Watch
National Climatic Data Center, 15 March 2007
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Global Analysis /
Global Hazards /
United States /
Extremes
Use these links to access detailed analyses of Global and U.S. data.
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Contents Of This Report:
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 National Overview
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- Based on the Palmer Drought Index,
severe to extreme drought affected about 8 percent of the contiguous United States as of the end of February 2007, about the same as last month.
By contrast, about 7 percent of the contiguous U.S. fell in the severely to extremely wet categories.
- About 22 percent of the contiguous U.S. fell in the
moderate to extreme drought categories (based on the Palmer Drought Index) at the end of February .
- On a broad scale, the previous two decades (1980s and 1990s) were characterized by unusual wetness with short periods of extensive droughts, whereas the 1930s and 1950s were characterized by prolonged periods of extensive droughts with little wetness (
moderate to extreme drought,
severe to extreme drought).
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- A file containing the national monthly percent area severely dry and wet from 1900 to present is available for the severe to extreme and moderate to extreme categories.
- Historical temperature, precipitation, and Palmer drought data from 1895 to present for climate divisions, states, and regions in the contiguous U.S. are available at the Climate Division: Temperature-Precipitation-Drought Data page in files having names that start with "drd964x" and ending with "txt" (without the quotes).
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Detailed Drought Discussion
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At the end of February extreme hydrologic drought was concentrated in Texas, Wyoming, and northern Minnesota. Drought and abnormal dryness covered a broad swath from central and southern California through the northwestern Plains into the upper Midwest (February 27 Drought Monitor). Drought and abnormal dryness continued in Florida and increased in the central and southern Appalachians. In southern California and the upper Midwest, soil moisture was low. Vegetative health had become more stressed in the West. Streamflow was low in the East, especially in Tennessee, in parts of the Plains, and in Wyoming.
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In Texas and Florida mandatory or voluntary water restrictions were in place in several municipalities. Private water wells were becoming dry in Texas. Burning bans were common in drought-stricken areas, and wildfires reduced forage in western Nebraska and increased in number in Florida. The hay supply in the central part of the country was 20 percent of average, leading to increased prices and abnormal selling of livestock at auctions. The killing of livestock and pets by wild animals in southcentral Texas increased as the wildlife searched for new food and water sources during the continuing drought. Dryness has increased the salinity of Virginia's James River and the Chesapeake Bay permitting the growth of parasites that are harmful to oysters; in some areas the oyster death rate was 90 percent. Impacts in drought-stricken areas have been collected and summarized by county at the National Drought Mitigation Center's Drought Impact Reporter.
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State/Regional/National Moisture Status
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Pre-Instrumental Perspective
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There is no Febuary 2007 Paleoclimatic Perspective
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Drought Indicators
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The following indicators illustrate the drought conditions this month:
- Palmer Drought Indices,
- Standardized Precipitation Index,
- long-term (36 to 60 month) percent of normal precipitation maps,
- airport station percent of normal precipitation maps,
- statewide precipitation rank maps,
- Cooperative station percent of normal precipitation maps,
- percent of average maps for the SNOTEL stations in the western mountains provided by the Western Regional Climate Center
- snow course snowpack observations in the western mountains provided by the USDA NRCS,
- satellite-based observations of vegetative health,
- National Weather Service model calculations of
- National Weather Service model calculations of soil moisture using the Leaky Bucket Model,
- Midwest Regional Climate Center model calculations of soil moisture,
- streamflow maps maintained by the USGS.
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Additional Contacts:
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- For all climate questions other than questions concerning this report, please contact the National Climatic Data Center's Climate Services Division:
Climate Services Division
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4876
phone: 828-271-4800
email: ncdc.info@noaa.gov
- For further information on the historical climate perspective presented in this report, contact:
Ned Guttman
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: Ned.Guttman@noaa.gov
-or-
Richard Heim
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: Richard.Heim@noaa.gov
-or-
Jay Lawrimore
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: Jay.Lawrimore@noaa.gov
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NCDC / Climate Mon. /
Climate-2007 / Feb / U.S. Drought / Help
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