Nationwide
The pattern of hot and dry conditions in the south with heavy rainfall to the north of the high-pressure system continued over this past week.
The highest precipitation amounts were from eastern Iowa and southeastern Minnesota eastward through southern Wisconsin, northern Illinois and into Ohio and West Virginia. Localized areas in this region received 6 to 8 inches of rainfall. Northeastern Kansas and northern Missouri received 3 to 5 inches, with western Nebraska to southeastern Montana picking up 2 to 3 inches. Monsoonal rain also fell in eastern Arizona to central New Mexico. Southern Florida also received several inches of rain over the week. Precipitation was very spotty and generally light, however, in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas, southern Missouri, and western Tennessee and Kentucky. Most of the West Coast states had little rain.
Most of the South was again 5-10 F above normal last week, peaking at over 15 F above normal in parts of southern Missouri. Several states are setting records for continued warmth during this late-summer-to-early-fall period. The rest of the continental U.S. had generally near-normal temperatures.
The West
Eastern Arizona to central New Mexico saw monsoonal storms that caused localized flooding and some drought improvement. Southern California and southern Nevada continued to be dry, leading to degradation of dry categories.
Central Utah, central Oregon, southern Idaho, and northern New Mexico remain the largest areas of extreme to exceptional drought in this region, with smaller areas of extreme drought in a few other states.
The High Plains
Most of the High Plains received beneficial rainfall, improving drought categories across parts of all states in the region.
However, more precipitation will be needed to alleviate the continued extreme drought over much of Colorado and Wyoming, as well as parts of Montana, North and South Dakota, and western Nebraska. Areas of exceptional drought still exist across much of central Colorado and western Nebraska.
The South
The continued heat and dry conditions resulted in large areas of degradation over the past week. Extreme drought can be found in every state in this region, with exceptional drought over much of northern Texas, western to southern Oklahoma, and parts of Arkansas.
Both short-term and long-term drought are contributing to the conditions in this region. Over the last year, west-central Oklahoma has been the driest on record, while southwest Oklahoma has been the second driest. — UNL Drought Monitor
