The month of October so far this year has been very dry and warm across most of the country. The exception: the Southeast, where the heavy rains in South Carolina show up as the only green spot in a sea of red. Other areas in the Southeast have been dry as most of the rainfall concentrated in South Carolina.
The Southeast has also been relatively cool, due in large part to the clouds and rain that have helped keep temperatures down. While precipitation amounts in the West have been quite low, they have actually been well above normal for the month due to the remnant rains from some Eastern Pacific Ocean tropical storms.
You can look at more of these maps at https://www.hprcc.unl.edu/maps.php?map=ACISClimateMaps.
In the next week, dry conditions should cover almost all of the Southeast as high pressure builds over the area. That is great news for farmers who need dry conditions for harvesting peanuts, cotton and hay. Models suggest that this will be the driest week for the next month, so make sure to take advantage of the sunny conditions!
