U.S. Drought Monitor Update
From the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA):
“According to the July 2, 2013, U.S. Drought Monitor, moderate to exceptional drought covers 44.1% of the contiguous United States, an increase from last week’s 43.8%. … During this past week, an entrenched upper-level high pressure system brought hot and dry weather to the western United States, while a cool upper-level trough dumped copious amounts of rain on places east of the Mississippi River.”
In the report specific to the Southwest and West included the following excerpt: “Hot and dry weather continued over the southwest and much of the west, with many locations breaking daily records for high temperatures. … A storm system did bring rains to northern California and parts of Oregon, prompting the removal of some D0 (abnormal dryness) from across the Cascades in Oregon.”
Read more from the NOAA news release