Mon, Jun 03, 2013
A May To Remember In a state so accustomed to highly variable and often tumultuous weather, May 2013 will be long remembered as… Read More »
Tue, Apr 23, 2013
Science of Climate Change and Variability Workshop Oklahomas for Excellence in Science Education, the Oklahoma Climatological Survey, the National Science Foundation, and the University of Oklahoma Biological… Read More »
Mon, Apr 01, 2013
Arrival of Spring Fails to Rescue Dry March April 1, 2013 The wet conditions of February failed to translate into March, but the cooler than normal… Read More »
Thu, Feb 28, 2013
February Brings Winter Storms, Drought Relief February 28, 2013 Winter roared back into Oklahoma during February, providing significant drought relief to much of the… Read More »
Mon, Feb 04, 2013
January Defies Dry Trend January 31, 2013 January seemed destined to finish on the dry side of normal, just as the eight months previous… Read More »
Wed, Jan 30, 2013
Oklahoma Mesonet Weather Camps 2013 We will be hosting two camps in the summer of 2013. A middle school camp for Middle School Oklahoma… Read More »
Wed, Jan 02, 2013
Heat and Drought Dominate 2012 Oklahoma Weather Headlines A slide back to true wintry weather, the likes of which had not been seen across Oklahoma since early… Read More »
Thu, Nov 29, 2012
Oklahoma Drought Picture Worsens During November Oklahoma Drought Picture Worsens During November Drought surged during November with a return to the dry, warm and… Read More »
Thu, Nov 08, 2012
Oklahoma Drought Continues to Expand With some areas of the state awaiting their first drop of rainfall since the end of September and a… Read More »
Thu, Nov 01, 2012
October Interrupts Warm Streak, But Not Drought It’s been awhile since Oklahoma has seen a month like October. Eleven months, to be exact. Not since September… Read More »
Tue, Oct 02, 2012
Late September Rains Provide Drought Relief Hopes for drought relief were starting to fade as September wound down, only to be saved by a slow-moving soaker… Read More »
Thu, Sep 06, 2012
Drought and Wildfires Plague August According to data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, August finished one degree above normal to rank as the 53rd warmest… Read More »
Thu, Aug 09, 2012
Extreme to Exceptional Drought Covers Most of Oklahoma Spurred by the rapidly intensifying flash drought and its impacts, including the extreme fire danger realized in the state… Read More »
Wed, Aug 01, 2012
July Blazes to Sixth Warmest on Record as Drought Expands August 1, 2012 Heat exploded across Oklahoma during July thanks to a rapidly intensifying drought and a persistent upper-level ridge… Read More »
Thu, Jul 19, 2012
Heat and Drought Surge Once Again in Oklahoma The drought plaguing much of the interior United States continues to stretch its tendrils into Oklahoma. Some experts claim… Read More »
Mon, Jul 02, 2012
June Ends On A Scorching Note A blistering final week and a return to drought transformed June from a mildly hot month into a… Read More »
Mon, Jun 04, 2012
May Ends Warmest Spring in Oklahoma History May Ends Warmest Spring in Oklahoma History Fri. June 1, 2012 A pleasantly cool final day and scattered heavy… Read More »
Fri, Mar 30, 2012
OK Regents Summer Academies This summer, invite your students to spend time at an Oklahoma college or university and discover the fascinating worlds of aeronautics,… Read More »
Fri, Mar 23, 2012
Drought Ends for Much of Oklahoma Drought Ends for Much of Oklahoma Thu, Mar 22, 2012 Heavy rain associated with this week’s slow-moving storm… Read More »
Thu, Mar 01, 2012
Warm February Closes Out Eleventh Warmest Winter in Oklahoma Golf clubs replaced parkas as the outdoor accessory of choice this winter, and Oklahoma’s kids can only dream of missed… Read More »
Thu, Jul 19, 2012
The drought plaguing much of the interior United States continues to stretch its tendrils into Oklahoma. Some experts claim the country’s current drought is the worst in a generation and possibly the largest since the great droughts of the 1930s and 1950s. In Oklahoma, significant heat along with mounting rainfall deficits have allowed drought to flourish once again. This morning’s release of the U.S. Drought Monitor report indicates severe to extreme drought had crept into the state from both the east and the west, with 64 percent of Oklahoma now portrayed in at least severe drought. That is the highest such level since Nov. 22, 2011, when the drought had just begun to diminish following its zenith in October. Approximately 15 percent of the state is considered in the extreme drought category, the highest percentage since early March when the drought appeared headed towards extinction. The Drought Monitor’s intensity scale slides from moderate-severe-extreme-exceptional, with exceptional being the worst category.
Unfortunately, the drought-quenching rains that extended through winter into March disappeared as the state’s primary rainy season approached. According to data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, the statewide average rainfall deficit from April 1 through July 18 grew to more than 5 inches. The statewide average total over that period was 8.95 inches, the fourth driest on record dating back to at least 1921. Parts of eastern Oklahoma are up to a foot below normal, while the northwestern corner of the state is running a comparable 6-8 inch deficit. The rainfall deficits steepened deeper into the rainy season. Since May 1, the statewide average rainfall total stood at 5.14 inches, nearly 6 inches below normal and the second driest May 1-July 18 dating back to at least 1921. For north central Oklahoma, it was the driest such period since 1921 with an average total of 3.21 inches, 7.4 inches below normal. Southwestern Oklahoma fared the best since May 1 with an average total of 5.95 inches, still a deficit of 4.4 inches, for a dismal ranking of 10th driest since 1921.
The drought impacts continue to mount. There are 29 county burn bans in effect as the vegetation that was allowed to thrive during the warm and wet early spring dries out, becoming fuel for wildfires. Reports of cattle sell-offs due to diminishing stock ponds and a lack of hay or pasture are becoming more numerous, and warm-season crop conditions show further deterioration. The USDA rated 91 percent of the state’s topsoils as being either short or very short of moisture, with a similar rating of 89 percent for the subsoils. State reservoirs have seen a steepening decline through the dry weather. Lake Altus-Lugert, an important irrigation lake for the cotton crop in the southwest, is down to 21 percent of its conservation pool. A part of Oklahoma City’s water supply chain upstream to the northwest, Canton Lake has faced steady declines and is now at 50% of its conservation pool. Several of the state’s largest reservoirs are between 80-85 percent of their conservation pools, such as Skiatook at 82 percent and Eufaula at 85 percent.
The outlook for relief is a bit bleak, at least in the short term. The Seasonal Drought Outlook released Thursday morning by the Climate Prediction Center calls for drought to persist or intensify over much of the United States, including Oklahoma, through at least the next couple of weeks. All indicators continue to favor above normal temperatures through August and the August-October period. Further heat would allow for continued drought intensification should rainfall remain scarce. Widespread triple-digit temperatures have returned to the state in recent days. The average temperature for July thus far is 2.5 degrees above normal, well on its way to becoming the 23rd month out of the last 28 to finish warmer than normal. Oklahoma continues on a possible course towards its warmest year on record, dating back to 1895. The statewide average January-June temperature finished at a record 60 degrees, 5 degrees above normal and besting 2006’s 58.9 degrees. The mark for the state’s warmest year on record remains 1954’s 62.8 degrees.
Latest U.S. Drought Monitor report (National)
Latest U.S. Drought Monitor report (Oklahoma)
Latest U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook from the Climate Prediction Center
