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IT'S BEEN DRY (a thread, pt2): Over the weekend, I talked about the need for rain for the Boston area. They are in the middle of one the driest 40 day stretches between May 17 and now. https://twitter.com/4cast4you/status/1274134777621340160?s=20
The same is true for Springfield -- if not worse.
The newest drought monitor that came out this morning put nearly all of western Mass in a moderate drought.
These are the first drought conditions observed in the Commonwealth since July 10, 2018.
The newest drought monitor that came out this morning put nearly all of western Mass in a moderate drought.
These are the first drought conditions observed in the Commonwealth since July 10, 2018.
The speed at which we entered the drought, from 0% of the state in a drought to 55%, is similar to May 2015. (0% to 100% in a couple weeks)
BTW... for Springfield, 2018 feature 26 days of 90° or higher, the most days in the last 5 years.
2020 - 4 days (so far)
2019 - 17 days
2018 - 26 days
2017 - 12 days
2016 - 14 days
2020 - 4 days (so far)
2019 - 17 days
2018 - 26 days
2017 - 12 days
2016 - 14 days
Anyway, back to the drought...
Springfield is running a 3.6" deficit for the last 8 weeks, increasing by ~0.25" every 2 days of no rain.
Springfield is running a 3.6" deficit for the last 8 weeks, increasing by ~0.25" every 2 days of no rain.
The top 2cm of the soil is so dry that the NASA Grace project estimates the soil moisture to be in the 2nd percentile
aka NOT GOOD.
aka NOT GOOD.
Now we don't just need the rain, but we need multiple nice steady rains. The downpours from thunderstorms will just run off and not be absorbed by the soil.
Rain in the forecast for Saturday, but it could be too heavy to be truly beneficial.
#GoldilocksRain #JustRight
Rain in the forecast for Saturday, but it could be too heavy to be truly beneficial.
#GoldilocksRain #JustRight
So let's hope for some good muddy puddles soon.
