Heat the Southwest; Fire Weather in the Central U.S.; Kona Low Impacting Hawaii

A rare March heat wave is ongoing with much above-normal temperatures over the Southwest U.S. through this weekend. Periods of critical fire weather will persist from the central Rockies to the central and southern Plains through the weekend as gusty winds and low relative humidity continue. A Kona low will continue to bring several rounds of moderate to heavy rainfall to Hawaii through Sunday. Read More >

Drought Monitor

Drought Statement

Current Conditions

Precipitation

Temperature

Drought Outlook

More Information

U.S. Drought Monitor | Click here for a listing of ways to obtain past precipitation

The categories of drought are defined as follows:

Abnormally Dry (D0)
Going into drought: short-term dryness slowing planting, growth of crops or pastures; fire risk above average. Coming out of drought: some lingering water deficits; pastures or crops not fully recovered.

Moderate Drought (D1)
Some damage to crops, pastures; fire risk high; streams, reservoirs, or wells low, some water shortages developing or imminent, voluntary water use restrictions requested.

Severe Drought (D2)
Crop or pasture losses likely; fire risk very high; water shortages common; water restrictions imposed.

Extreme Drought (D3)
Major crop/pasture losses; extreme fire danger; widespread water shortages or restrictions.

Exceptional Drought (D4)
Exceptional and widespread crop/pasture losses; exceptional fire risk; shortages of water in reservoirs, streams, and wells, creating water emergencies.

Drought Information Statement

Calculated Soil Moisture Anomaly	Evaporative Demand Drought Index (EDDI)
GOES-16 Greenness 8-Day Max (NVDI based)	GOES-16 Greenness 5-Day Change (NDVI based)

Past Precipitation

24-Hour Estimated Precipitation	3-Day Estimated Precipitation
5-Day Estimated Precipitation	30-Day Estimated Precipitation
7-Day Percent of Normal	30-Day Percent of Normal
90-Day Percent of Normal	120-Day Percent of Normal

Precipitation Forecast

1 Day Precipitation Forecast	2 Day Precipitation Forecast
3 Day Precipitation Forecast	5 Day Precipitation Forecast
7 Day Precipitation Forecast

Precipitation Outlook

6-10 Day Precipitation Outlook	8-14 Day Precipitation Outlook
One Month Precipitation Outlook	Three Month Precipitation Outlook

Departure From Normal

7 Day Departure from Normal Temperature	14 Day Departure From Normal Temperature
30 Day Departure From Normal Temperature	60 Day Departure From Normal Temperature
Mean Temperature

Temperature Outlook

6-10 Day Temperature Outlook	8-14 Day Temperature Outlook
One Month Temperature Outlook	Three Month Temperature Outlook

Climate Prediction Center U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook

Related Drought Links

The drought monitor is a multi-agency effort involving NOAA’s National Weather Service (NWS) and the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), State and Regional Climate Centers, and the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Information for this statement has been gathered from a number of different federal, state, and local agencies including the NWS and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Observing Sites, State Cooperative Extension Services, United States Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), the United States Geological Survey (USGS), and many more.

If you have any questions or comments about this drought information please contact:

Aaron Woodward
Warning Coordination Meteorologist
aaron.woodward@noaa.gov

National Weather Service
300 East Signal Drive
Rapid City South Dakota 57701
605-341-9271 ext. 493