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If you are tired of thinking about hot weather, you might be interested in reading this new report on the extreme weather that hit the central US and especially Texas in February 2021. It is published by the Southern Climate Impacts Planning Program (SCIPP) and focuses on the weather in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Arkansas,…
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The monthly climate summary for the US was released by NOAA late last week. The summary showed that due to extraordinary heat waves in the Pacific Northwest and in the Northeast, the average temperature for the 48 contiguous states was 72.6 F. That is 4.2 degrees above normal and higher than the previous record June…
Posted in: Climate summaries -
There have been a lot of stories about heat and drought across the world over the last couple of weeks. Here are some of the ones that I thought were the most interesting. The Guardian: In California’s interior, there’s no escape from the desperate heat: ‘Why are we even here?’ Idaho Statesman: Amid drought, thousands…
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The latest 7-day QPF map shows that while there will be scattered showers across the Southeast this week, most areas will not see a lot of rain. The wettest areas will be in the mountains and in southern Florida, where storms may be more frequent. In other areas, there will be a chance of rain…
Posted in: Climate outlooks -
We are in neutral conditions now, but this week NOAA forecasters issued a La Niña Watch, indicating that they think La Niña will likely return in the September through November period and last through next winter. Although El Niños seldom last for more than one winter, it is not at all unusual for La Nina…
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As the climate shifts to warmer conditions and higher carbon dioxide in the atmosphere as well as more variable rainfall, plant breeders are working hard to produce new varieties of crops that are better suited to the new conditions. This story from Modern Farmer discusses how plant geneticists are working to develop high-yielding, stress-resistant cultivars…
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This week’s Drought Monitor map shows that there is still moderate drought (D1) and abnormally dry conditions (D0) in the Carolinas and Virginia. The map was produced with a cutoff of Tuesday, so the rain that is falling there today will probably reduce the dry conditions in next week’s map. Florida’s dry conditions were significantly…
Posted in: Drought