• Today marks the start of astronomical spring (remember, climatological spring started on March 1). It is also known as the vernal equinox because days and nights are of equal length. It’s the earliest start to spring in well over 100 years because of the leap year and other factors. You can read more at EarthSky…

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  • The latest monthly and season climate outlooks were released by NOAA today. Both April and the April through June periods show that warmer and wetter conditions are likely for most of the Southeast. The exception is for the Florida peninsula, which is expected to be warmer and drier than normal in the short term, leading…

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  • The latest Drought Monitor, released this morning, shows that while there is no change in drought from last week, the area of abnormally dry conditions have expanded significantly in Florida over the last week due to the very light precipitation they have received. There was also a slight increase in southern Alabama, which also missed…

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  • It’s halfway through the month, and a quick look at the climate so far from the High Plains Regional Climate Center reveals that temperature has been above normal across the area, although less so in areas with more rain and clouds. Rainfall has been highly variable with the main rain band locked in place, leading…

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  • As I was browsing my computer today avoiding work and tax preparation, I looked at the website for Physics Today and noticed that they have a lot of stories which relate aspects of agriculture and climate. Many of them are based on new research and publicized by universities or other scientific agencies. Here is a…

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  • According to an article in Southeast Farm Press this week, there are some benefits that soybean farmers can get from planting their soybeans before May, but it comes with risk too. Benefits include increased yields, lower disease pressure, and the ability to take advantage of soil moisture before it gets hot and dry later in…

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  • If you are interested in how extreme weather and climate are affecting crops in other parts of the world, Bloomberg provides a good tour of different countries at https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-09/extreme-weather-events-expose-vulnerability-of-crops-globally There are a surprising number of different impacts on Asia, Africa, Europe and North and South America listed.

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