Nationwide
There was a sharp difference in temperatures across the U.S. this week (Sep. 3 to Sep. 10). Temperatures in the West were above normal, whereas areas from Texas to Wisconsin and east saw temperatures of 3-9 degrees below normal.
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Very little precipitation fell, with Hurricane Francine providing most of it along the Gulf Coast. Overall, the central and eastern portions of the country saw continued deterioration, adding to already expansive deterioration from last week. Though moderate and severe drought conditions are spreading through the southern Midwest into the Southeast, the Ohio River Basin continues to be the epicenter of extremely dry conditions.
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Improvements made along the Gulf Coast were primarily due to the well-above-normal precipitation brought by Hurricane Francine. There were some other areas of improvement in New Mexico, northeastern Arizona, eastern Utah, southern Wyoming and northwestern Montana. Areas of the West that have not seen any meaningful precipitation in a while are beginning to see dropping streamflows and drying soils.
The West
The West remained mostly dry with little to no precipitation and above-normal temperatures, except for southern New Mexico, where conditions improved mainly on the residual effects of a wet few weeks and aided by below-normal temperatures.
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Central and northeastern Arizona into southeastern Utah also saw some improvements. Arizona also saw the expansion of moderate drought, overflowing into southern California. Central California also saw abnormally dry conditions expand. Northern Nevada, eastern Oregon and west-central Idaho saw widespread moderate drought expansion due to warm temperatures, lack of precipitation and drying soils. Washington into northwestern Idaho saw severe conditions expand, but extreme dryness was removed in Grant County, Washington as conditions were similar to the surrounding severe drought conditions.
The High Plains
The High Plains saw a mixed bag of improvements and degradations. The area remained hot and dry, except for eastern Nebraska and Kansas.
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Higher elevations of Colorado and Wyoming did receive some precipitation, but conditions remained mostly status quo. Kansas has experienced feast or famine precipitation since the beginning of summer. Some isolated, slow-moving thunderstorms provided good moisture in the center of the state, but abnormally dry or moderate drought conditions expanded along the Kansas western, southern and eastern borders.
Eastern Colorado is beginning to show signs of a prolonged dry period, with moderate drought creeping further eastward from the Kansas border. Similarly, central and northern Wyoming are showing drier signals in the short term, including soil moisture. These same conditions brought abnormally dry conditions along the North and South Dakota border and into southern and eastern Nebraska.
The South
The western portion of the South saw widespread improvements from central Texas to central Mississippi.
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Heavy rainfall from Hurricane Francine dropped 2 to 6 inches of rain, and the southeastern tip of Louisiana got as much as 14 inches of rain. Outside of the Gulf Coast, precipitation was lacking, with precipitation hovering below normal. Temperatures were 2 to 6 degrees below normal, with localized areas 6-8 degrees below normal. Central and southern Texas continued to see one-category improvements.
Louisiana saw most of the abnormal dryness added last week removed due to abundant precipitation. Things started to degrade in Oklahoma, northeast Texas, Arkansas and northern Mississippi, where one-category degradations were widespread. — UNL Drought Monitor
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