SOUTHEAST DROUGHT
According to the Southeast
Regional Climate Center, monthly precipitation totals were
below normal across most of the region. Precipitation was less than
50 percent of normal across southern portions of North Carolina,
much of South Carolina, Georgia, as well as southern and western
Florida. Much of Puerto Rico experienced below-normal precipitation
totals for the month. West Palm Beach, Florida had the driest
January on record with only 0.11 inch (3 mm) of precipitation. The
dryness in South Florida significantly increased the wildfire
potential in that region. Rainfall provided some short-term relief
from drought conditions across portions of northern Alabama and
northern Georgia.
Drought conditions changed very little during the month. The region
of extreme drought conditions shrank slightly across northwestern
South Carolina and extreme northeast Georgia as a result of heavy
precipitation on the 6th and 7th. Streamflow and groundwater levels
continued to be low in this region; however, low demand for water
resources prevented water supply systems from experiencing
problems. Moderate drought conditions continued across western
North Carolina, small portions of southwest Virginia, and west
central Florida.
SOUTHERN REGION DROUGHT
As noted by the Southern
Regional Climate Center, January proved to be a very dry month
in the Southern Region with the majority of stations reporting only
25 percent of normal precipitation or less. Many stations in
western and southern Texas reported zero to less than one tenth of
an inch (0-2.54 mm) of precipitation. Conditions were equally as
dry in western and northern Oklahoma. In east Texas, several
stations reported over an inch of precipitation; however, many of
these stations were still 1-3 inches (25-76 mm) below the monthly
mean. Similar values were observed in Louisiana, Mississippi and
southern Arkansas. Counties in northern and eastern Tennessee
reported above normal precipitation for the month, as did a small
number of counties in northwestern Arkansas. In these regions,
precipitation totals varied from 130 to 175 percent of normal. In
eastern Tennessee, the excess precipitation should prove helpful in
alleviating some of the drought that has taken hold there for
several months.
The dry conditions in the Southern Region during the month of
January led to a rather significant change in drought conditions,
particularly within Texas and Oklahoma. In Texas, anomalously low
precipitation values resulted in an expansion of the extreme and
exceptional drought from the previous month. In addition, a belt of
severe drought developed from southern Oklahoma to central Texas.
In Louisiana, dry conditions resulted in a small area of moderate
drought along the coast from Vermillion Bay to Barataria Bay. In
contrast, anomalously high precipitation in eastern Tennessee
resulted in an improvement for much of the eastern third of the
state. A small area of moderate drought, however, persisted along
the state's eastern boundary.
MIDWEST DROUGHT
As explained by the Midwest
Regional Climate Center, as a whole, the Midwest experienced a
dry January. Precipitation ranged from less than 10 percent of
normal in western Missouri to 150 percent of normal in eastern
Kentucky and in the western Upper Peninsula of Michigan. However,
until the storm of January 26-29, the only areas with normal to
above normal precipitation were the Michigan Upper Peninsula,
western Iowa, and extreme eastern Kentucky. The late January storm
brought significant precipitation to an area from the Missouri
Ozarks through the Ohio Valley. More than 3 inches (76 mm) of rain
fell on most of Kentucky, with more than 5 inches (127 mm) in the
extreme south. January snowfall was normal to much above normal
from Iowa eastward through Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, and from
southeastern Missouri east-northeast along the Ohio River. Snowfall
was also as much as 200 percent of normal in far northern Minnesota
and in the Michigan Upper Peninsula. At the end of the month snow
covered most of the Midwest with the exception of western Missouri
and southern Kentucky.
HIGH PLAINS REGION DROUGHT
As noted by the High Plains
Regional Climate Center, little to no precipitation fell across
a large area of the High Plains this month as much of the southern
portion of the region received less than 50 percent of normal
precipitation. Drought conditions persisted across western North
Dakota, western Wyoming, and southeastern Colorado as these areas
also saw little to no precipitation.
WESTERN DROUGHT
As summarized by the Western
Regional Climate Center, most of the West had near- or
below-normal precipitation, especially the Southwest and
California. Many stations in New Mexico measured no precipitation
for the month. Unless abnormally wet conditions occur in California
over the next couple of months, severe water restrictions will be
enforced as the state faces its third straight dry winter. Snowpack
in the Sierra Nevada was at only 60 percent of normal by the end of
the month and many
California reservoirs were at their lowest level in over 30
years. Snow conditions in the rest of the West, however, fared
better with most of the intermountain region at or near normal ...
even New Mexico. By contrast, the panhandle of Alaska was quite wet
with Juneau recording its second wettest January back to 1948 and
the snowiest all-time with 75.2 inches (191 cm). Yakutat set a new
January daily record with 7.44 inches (189 mm) falling on the 18th.
Although parts of the Pacific Northwest faced severe flooding
during the first week of January, the total monthly rainfall was
near or slightly below normal as high pressure dominated for the
rest of the month.
California: Several municipalities or water
districts in California had drought declarations or water
restrictions in place during January (source: Drought Impacts
Reporter, California Department of Water Resources). A
Reservoir Drought Status Product, created by the National
Weather Service and California State Climatologist Office,
indicated that the worst reservoir conditions were in northern
California. The reservoirs (for example,
Folsom, Oroville and Shasta) that are tapped by the State Water
Project for a multitude of demands (agriculture, environmental,
urban, etc.) were near record lows at the end of January. Based on
an end-of-January snow survey, snow water content was 49 percent of
normal in California's Northern Sierra, 63 percent in the Central
Sierra, and 68 percent in the Southern Sierra. This equates to a
statewide snowpack water content of 61 percent. California
Department of Water Resources Director Lester Snow was concerned
that the low precipitation and snowpack in January indicated that
the state was heading for a third dry year. "We may be at the start
of the worst California drought in modern history",
Director Snow said. "It's imperative for Californians to
conserve water immediately at home and in their businesses."
Alaska: According to National Weather
Service reports (from information compiled and provided by Audrey
Rubel at NOAA NWS Alaska Region Headquarters), in general,
precipitation (melted snow and rain) across Alaska was at or above
normal for much of the state, with the exception of the central
interior and parts of the southwest. Record snow amounts occurred
in the southeast.
NORTHEAST DROUGHT
As noted by the Northeast
Regional Climate Center, precipitation totals were below normal
this month. The region's average of 2.22 inches (5.64 cm) was 66
percent of the normal January amount. Massachusetts' total (95
percent) was closest to normal. Vermont was the driest state, with
only 50 percent of the normal precipitation. While precipitation
was below normal, cold temperatures ensured that what fell out of
the clouds was mainly in the form of snow or sleet. Many areas of
the Northeast saw snow totals that were 10 to 20 inches (25 to 51
cm) above normal.
The precipitation that fell during the last week of January
improved drought conditions in West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Only
portions of Pocohontas, Monroe and Mercer Counties along the West
Virginia-Virginia border were in moderate drought when the USDM was
updated on February
3, 2009. The same report indicated two small areas of
abnormally dry conditions: one in eastern West Virginia and the
other in northwestern Pennsylvania. Elsewhere in the Northeast,
eastern New York and most of New England were experiencing
extremely moist conditions, according to the January 2009 Long
Term Palmer Drought Severity Index.
|
NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information
weather pattern
for much of January was dominated by an
upper-level high pressure ridge over the western U.S. and an
upper-air trough over the East. This pattern directed a series of
cold fronts east of the Rockies which brought below-normal
temperatures and
above-average snow cover to parts of the central and eastern
United States. Temperatures were above normal
across most of the West, but
snow cover extent, and mountain
snowpack and snow
water content, were below average in many areas. The upper-air
pattern blocked moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, so much of the
country had below-average
precipitation during the month. As a result, drought conditions
improved in the Southeast to Ohio Valley but intensified in the
southern Plains and parts of California (January 27 USDM
versus December 30
USDM).
